Scarlet Archive: The Origin
by worthlessvalor
Summary: This is a story of the Scarlets, when they have finally decided to leave their tattered world behind. Fourth Arc: Advance. Chapter 4.2: "We are moving away. Tonight."
1. Thus the story begins

_This is a story from a long long ago, in a faraway time, when vampires roamed free, yet kept hidden from the eyes of the world. When they still hold an unrivaled dignity in the society of the night. _

_This is a story of the Scarlets, when there were still more than them than just two._

xxxxx

**496 years ago, a certain town in England—**

"Remi..."

A sweet feminine voice echoed throughout the mansion's wide hall. As if to answer the call, a pitter-pattering sound of small footsteps followed.

"Remilia..."

The sound of the footsteps was light, and airy, as if the owner hovered slightly off the ground as they walked. Sometimes it would move at a fast pace, indicating excitement, but gradually it went slower to a perfect rhythm, like a child afraid of being scolded for misbehaving. The footsteps came into a stop after a while, revealing a young little girl with lavender hair; her scarlet eyes radiating a strange calmness unfitted for a child of her age. On her back was a pair of small bat-like wings; they fluttered slightly as she curtsied.

"Yes, dear mother? Do you have any need of my presence?"

"There you are. Come here, Remilia. I have something important to tell you."

The young vampire blinked, before tilting her head to peek at that certain something hidden behind her mother's beautiful figure. Her scarlet eyes were met with a matching golden orbs. She jolted a bit, and ran to her mother's side, clutching at her long dress. Her mother simply laughed softly and patted her head. Remilia pouted, furrowing her brows as she studied the unfamiliar figure that was standing there, eyeing her as well in return.

"Who is that?"

She snarled, rather unsightly; the calmness around her had faltered, showing the true childish attitude of a child she was.

"Well, why don't you ask him by yourself, Remilia?"

Remilia glanced at her mother, before reverting her gaze back at the boy. She clutched her mother's dress tighter. Sensing her discomfort, the boy bowed.

"My name is Geoffrey Hildr, the second son of the Hildr. It is very nice to see you, young miss."

He smiled, more for formalities though; he was rather...displeased by the attitude she was giving. It was not like he came to eat her or anything; the boy sighed to himself. The oldest of the three vampires noticed the heavy atmosphere around them. She had thought it would turn out this way; Remilia had never been good with strangers, especially with those that she thought would be 'taking away her most charismatic spot', or so she declared. True, the boy did hold a calm and intelligent aura around him beside his very young age. That is to be expected from the second child of the Hildr family; one of the most renowned and proud family of vampires, next to the Scarlet.

"Now, Remilia, why don't you introduce yourself as well?"

The young vampire let out a quiet 'hmph' and curtsied rather quickly.

"Remilia Scarlet."

After that she returned to her mother's side, clutching her dress once again. The older Scarlet sighed at her daughter's behavior. It would take a while, she thought, as she stroked her daughter's hair softly. She smiled.

"You see dear, Geoffrey will be staying with us from now on."

"What?"

Remilia practically shouted, a lot louder than she wanted to. The boy adjacent to her seemed to have hit his edge as well, clearly irritated now; alas, though how well he had been raised, he was still a child.

"Is there something wrong with that?"

He crossed his arms, glaring at the girl. Remilia snapped her eyes back to the boy, returning the glare.

"Yes. Yes, of course! Who are you to suddenly come here and live with us? You are not secretly one of the servants, are you?"

"Servants—how dare you insult the name of the proud Hildr! Take back what you say, now!"

"Now, now you two."

Suddenly something hard hit them and forced the two young vampires to clutch their heads in pain, a small bump appearing on them. They turned their face toward the source of the voice and were met with shining red eyes, and a creepy smile; they backed away slightly in fear.

"Will the two of you behave nicely, please?"

"Yes, ma'am..."

"Very well."

The female Scarlet cleared her throat, regaining her composure; the scary atmosphere around her quickly disappeared, returning her beautiful smile. _Mother sure is amazing, to be able to change her face from demonic to angelic at a heartbeat,_ Remilia thought as she rubbed the bump on her head.

"Geoffrey, this is my daughter Remilia. As you already know, she will be your fiancee. So I hope the two of you can get along."

"I understand, Aunt Cecil."

Remilia stood there dumbfounded. After a few moments of silence, she tugged on her mother's dress, gaining her attention.

"What is it, Remilia?"

"Mom, what is a fiancee?"

She asked, eyes big and full of innocence. Cecilia Scarlet tapped her chin, trying to give her an explanation the young vampire might understand. After a while she gave up, and shrugged.

"Well in short, the two of you will be living together."

"Forever?"

"Theoretically, yes."

The young vampire stared at her mother, to Geoffrey, and back to her mother, a look of disbelief on her face. Then she ran to the nearby shelf, taking a book she could find and threw it at the boy. The poor vampire was too shocked at her sudden action to dodge and the book hit him square on the head. He growled and rubbed the second bump on his head.

"Hey!"

Remilia stuck her tongue out and ran. Geoffrey smiled, then laughed, and finally he snapped and roared in fury.

"Get back here, you little runt!"

"Oh my, what a colorful language he had learned. The Hildr sure is amazing."

Cecilia chuckled as she saw the enraged boy chasing after the girl, shaking his fist in the air. Looked like the days would be a lot more interesting from now on. She smiled, rubbing the almost non-existent bulge on her belly.

"I am sure you can't wait to see them as well, Flandre."

* * *

**Dun, dun, dun! **

**Hello everyone. So yeah, I decided to share my Gensokyo here.**

**The Origin will tell the back story of the Scarlets and the rest of the staff, until the Scarlet Mist Incident that is.**

**Enjoy the story~ And leave a review to let me know how you think. **

**See you in the next chapter**


	2. Against the daylight

The morning sun shone brightly that day, greeting the whole world with a warm smile of its own. But a certain small town, tucked on the edge of the great britain, didn't even look up to receive the greeting. It stayed silent, as if sleeping, with no soul venturing its empty road. It was nothing unusual though; travelers who passed by, or the villagers from the neighboring village, all of them didn't bother the quietness. Or rather the didn't intend, or even dare to. Because it is said that the town, the whole inhabitants, were creatures of the night. Yes, it was a town of the vampires.

Some acknowledged it as mere legend. Some decided to ignore it. Some held fear of it. But, let us ignore what these mere humans had to say. Let them do what the want, making stories they can come up with. What we are looking for is the truth from the vampires themselves.

Anyway, at the center of the town stood a huge mansion painted in deep red. There is where most of our story will take part; the scarlet mansion, where the Scarlet family resided. The Scarlet family was one of the most influenced family there, controlling almost the whole aspects of the town. While there was still the great council, consisted of the head of each family, in reality the Scarlets were known to have the most authority. It is because the elder of the Scarlets, the oldest vampire on the town he was, was said to be the one to establish the town. Vampires were quite territorial creatures, so it is rare to find a whole town consisted of them only. They would feed from villagers from neighboring villages, or travelers, or slaves bought from the slave market. It was like a safe haven for vampires.

One of the vampires living there was the young Remilia Scarlet, the next heiress of the Scarlet family. As the first child of the family, it has been decided from her birth that she would take over the family someday, which was still a long long time since a vampire's life was long, and she was nothing more but five by now. But even then, her life had been set on a track; her fate had been sealed without she even noticed it. The little vampire could simply sleep peacefully, completely oblivious of the fact.

Remilia hugged her comfy blanket around her, trying to sleep. She turned and tossed but only managed to make her bed messy. After a while she gave up and opened her eyes, staring at the ceiling. She was not sleepy, but didn't feel like waking up either. Oh how she regretted sleeping earlier last evening; there was nothing fun to do at daytime! All she could do was staying in the mansion, while everyone else were sleeping. That, if she didn't want to burn herself to death out in the sun.

It was when she was whining to herself that she heard footsteps on the hallway. She had thought it was one of the maids but she recalled the difference of the two sounds. So someone was up, she thought to herself as she pushed her bedroom door open to peek. As soon as she did it, she regretted it; it was one of a person from her top 'stay away from me' list.

"Good morning, Remi."

She flinched. Too late to turn back now; she pushed her door fully open.

"Good morning to you too, Geoffrey."

Remilia eyed him, up and down; as she did her face that was full of disgust turned into something more of curiosity.

"Are you going...out?"

"Yes."

"Now?"

"No, tomorrow."

Sarcasm. One thing she hated about him. She wondered how she would cope with living with him, forever on top of that. Maybe she could ask her mother to think over the whole fiancee thingy. No, wait. Something clicked in her head and she snickered evilly. Geoffrey, confused by her sudden change of demeanor, raised an eyebrow at her.

"What're you laughing so creepily about?"

"Fufufu, so you have finally decided to suicide? Don't worry, I won't tell. I will hide your ash well."

The other vampire stared at her while trying to contemplate her words. As he succeeded, it was his turned to laugh. Remilia was shocked by his reaction.

"Wha—Are you making fun of me?"

"Pardon me, missy, you scared of the sun?"

"Buh—I, well I am simply concerned! Only a fool will ever venture the daylight and be burned to ashes."

"Oh, really? Watch."

As he said that Geoffrey entered and opened the curtain leading to the only window on her room. Remilia yelped, running to the edge of her bed and crouching behind it to shield herself. The boy ignored her and proceeded to open the glass window. After that, he climbed out. Remilia, still hiding, slowly peeked up to check on the boy.

"Geoffrey? Are you dead yet?"

"Apparently, yes. Wanna see my body crumbling to ashes?"

Couldn't he put the sarcasm away for a while? Remilia sighed and rose to her feet cautiously. There he was, standing with all his glory, bracing the daylight. She was overwhelmed with awe, unabled to form words for a while.

"How...could you...?"

"As long as the sunlight doesn't touch our skin directly it'll be fine. That's what these gloves and hat for. You wanna try? Grabbed that parasol and come over here."

Remilia did as she was told and headed for the window. She hesitated.

"Come on, Remi."

She grabbed her parasoul tighter, closed her eyes, and jumped out of the window. As her bare feet touched the grass she opened her eyes, finding herself still in one piece and didn't turn to ashes. She turned her face to Geoffrey, who gave her an 'I told you' look, and smiled in excitement.

"I'm out on the daylight!"

With that, she jumped and tackled the boy. The two stumbled down, with Remilia simply crushing the boy beneath her while laughing her heart off. Geoffrey sighed, taking the parasol to shield her from the sun as the girl seemed to have forgotten about it.

"Remilia, dear?"

Remilia quickly rose to a sitting position, barely hitting Geoffrey on his chin, searching for the source of the voice.

"What are you doing out there on your pajamas?"

"Mother!"

Remilia rushed to the window, leaving the boy to run after her to stop her from killing herself from the sun ray, parasol on hand.

"Mother, mother, look! It's daytime and yet—"

"Yes, I know sweetie. Ah Geoffrey, are you going somewhere?"

"Yes, aunt Cecil. I have something to attend back at my house."

"Hm, hm, I see."

Cecilia turned her eyes to the ceiling, searching for ideas as she stroked her daughter's hair.

"Can you take Remilia with you then? She seems eager to have a walk."

"But I'm having an important—"

"Please?"

The older Scarlet gave him puppy eyes, followed by the younger one. Oh for—this mother and daughter—Geoffrey nudged his temple and sighed.

"I understand."

They squealed, giving each other a high five.

"Now be a dear and wait at the front door, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am..."

With that, the Hildr walked to his waiting spot while the Scarlets headed inside. This would take a while.

xxxxx

Remilia skipped happily down the mansion's long corridor, trying to keep her hat intact as she did. Her heart was dancing with excitement. This was going to be so much fun! She giggled to herself. That was why she failed to notice a figure walking to the opposite direction of her, and as she turned on the corner, she bumped on them and fell to her butt.

"Ouch, watch where you...going..."

Remilia froze, staring eye to eye with another pair of scarlet eyes.

"Hello, father."

She shrunk under his cold gaze, but managed to stand and dust her skirt off.

"Are you going somewhere, Remilia?"

His deep and stern voice made the young vampire lowered her head further.

"Answer me, would you please?"

"Yes, father. I am going out to accompany Geoffrey on his errand."

"Is that all?"

Remilia flinched, feeling the older Scarlet's eyes bored through her. She swallowed hard, trying to find her voice.

"I...I want...to go..."

"You do know that it is dangerous for us to walk around on day, don't you?"

"...yes."

She closed her eyes, ready for any punishment she might get.

"Very well then. I insist that you never—"

This was it.

"—forget to keep your parasol with you."

"Yes—wait, what?"

The young vampire instantly turned her face back up, staring at her father in disbelief. Did he just let her go outside? Wasn't he the one who told her NEVER to go outside before, especially on day? This was definitely contradicting.

"Run along now."

Remilia couldn't believe her ears. She curtsied quickly and ran toward the door.

"Oh, and Remilia. Try not to bump into any of the elders. They may send you back home and cause us...'problems'."

"Yes, Father. And Thank you for your kind understanding."

With that she stormed off the front door, skipping happily to her male companion.

"What took you so long?"

"Hehe, something good just happened."

"...whatever. Let's go."

Remilia stood on her ground, crossing her arms.

"Won't you be a gentleman and escort me properly?"

Geoffrey glanced at the girl, sighing.

"Fine, milady. Let us go."

He bowed and offered his right hand to her. She smiled in satisfaction.

"Thank you."

And with that, the two young vampires walked under the daylight, hand on hand. Daring the sun.

* * *

**Ah, so light and fluffy. I feel like contradicting myself as well, labeling this as tragedy. Yeah well, it will gradually.**

**Hope you enjoy the story as much as I do~ And, if you be kind, review please. **

**See you in the next chapter.**


	3. The Hildrs

Remilia Scarlet had never been let freely outside before.

As the one chosen to be the next heiress of the noble Scarlet, Remilia spent her days learning all the things she needed to know; from etiquette and manners, to language and politics. With all of her needs supplied by the servants, she did not have any reason to leave the mansion. It wasn't rare to see her gazing absentmindedly through the window while waiting for her next lesson. The girl had dreamed about it so many times; to venture outside simply to have some fun, not to accompany her grandfather to a political meeting. And that one simple dream, came true today.

Remilia ran around the empty street, happily dragging her male companion behind her. She danced and twirled on her heels, laughing. Something caught the curiosity in her eyes.

"Hey, Geoffrey. What is this?"

"That's a cat. A domisticated, carnivorous mammal—"

"It is so fluffy!"

She crouched and stroked the little ball of fur, smiling happily all the time. Geoffrey stared as she did, half surprised to see her that excited; he thought she was a spoiled child full of arrogance, but at a closer look, maybe she was simply innocent and scared of the unknown. Oh well, she had never known what it's mean to have fun like a little child she actually was. Maybe he would let her took her chance.

"Come on, Remi. There's still more to see."

He took her around the town, the one she would govern someday; the general store, the flower shop, the bakery, and many more. Before they realized the sun was already high on the sky. Geoffrey stood and stretched.

"Alright, time to do what we have to do."

xxxxx

"Hey, Geoffrey."

"Hm?"

"Aren't we going to your house?"

"Yes, we are."

Remilia furrowed her brow, pushing away the tall grass from her vision.

"Are your house in the wilderness?"

"Exactly."

Not another sarcasm. She huffed and decided to keep silent, following close behind the other vampire, which is quite hard with her long skirt. After a few minutes of walk through tall grass and weeds, they were met with tall fortified walls. Geoffrey crossed his arms, waiting for Remilia to calm herself as she saw the magnificent stone wall.

"Alright, let's climb."

"...you are climbing...the wall to your own house."

She gave him a skeptical look. Geoffrey ignored her and searched for a footing. He cursed.

"Looks like father had filled the holes I made for footing."

He looked around, looking for ideas.

"Why can't we use the front door?"

"Because."

Remilia sighed as he ignored her once again.

"Why can't we just fly?"

"Oh, right. I'll let the sun burns my wings, thank you."

"We can use my parasol to cover ourselves."

"You think the two of us will fit—"

Geoffrey stopped mid-sentence, turning his head to her in an instant; she almost scared he would broke his neck.

"Fly and carry me up there."

"What—"

"Just hurry, Remi. Before anyone spotted us."

He snatched her parasol, almost forgot to keep it above her head. The other vampire took a deep breath, relaxing her wings, letting them expand to their full length, which were longer than her own height. She took the boy on his arm. Slowly, they hovered on the air, and soon enough they passed the wall. Geoffrey handed over her parasol, taking the lead once again.

"So why are you sneaking to your house again?"

He didn't respond. Remilia started to get irritated and stopped on her track, a hand on her hip.

"Answer me, Geoffrey. Or I'll call the guard."

How wonderful. He sighed and turned around, giving her an equally annoyed look.

"Because, I don't fancy the idea of bumping into my father."

Remilia blinked, giving him an oblivious look.

"What is wrong with your father?"

"Well, he is..."

Geoffrey took a deep breath and exhaled an equally long one.

"..something else."

What did he mean by that, she wondered. Remilia decided not to push the matter any further and followed him climbing through one of the many window. A young man was waiting for them, sitting on the couch while reading a book.

"Ah, there you are my dear brother. And who do you have with you?"

Geoffrey bowed, slightly, before mentioning to Remilia.

"This is my fiancee, Remilia Scarlet. Remi, this is Reinald. My older brother and the next head of Hildr. Greetings' done. Now what do you need from me, brother?"

Reinald shook his head.

"How rude, Geoffrey. Have a sit, please. I'll call the servant to make us tea."

"No, thanks. If it wasn't for your urgent call, I won't even think of going back here."

The older Hildr grew quiet; his expression turned solemn.

"Is it because of father?"

Geoffrey clamped his mouth shut. Remilia simply stared at the two Hildr all the time, didn't even know what to say. A dense atmosphere filled the air as silence lingered around the room. Just as Geoffrey was about to open his mouth to say something, the door creaked open leading to the room, revealing his nightmare.

"Oh shi—"

"Ah, my beloved son~ You're back~~"

Remilia flinched a bit as she saw the middle-aged vampire tackled his son, hugging him like an over-obsessed parent; then again, maybe he really was. Another smaller vampire, probably about a year or two younger than her, followed behind him. Judging from his silver hair and golden eyes, he must be one of the Hildr as well. Geoffrey's younger brother, perhaps?

"Argh, dad! Get off of me!"

"You don't know how much I missed you, sonny."

"Excuse me, father. We have a guest."

Reinald tapped on his shoulder, motioning to the dumbfounded Remilia across the room. The older vampire quickly stood up straight, regaining his composure.

"Welcome, young lady. I am Aldrich, the head of the Hildr household. Please make yourself at home."

"Uh, um, thank you."

Remilia let out an awkward laugh; Geoffrey did say he was something else but she didn't expect him to be...this much. Isn't he supposed to be the head of the family? She could never imagine her father acting like that. As she was lost in her thought she didn't realize a small vampire approaching her, staring at her in curiosity. Remilia blinked back to reality, staring eye to eye with a pair of golden orbs.

"Hello..."

"I'm Willard! And you are?"

"Remilia Scarlet."

"Scarlet? Hm, I think I've heard that name."

"Hey, Will. Stop staring at her."

Geoffrey snatched his younger brother by his collar, jerking him away.

"Is she your fiancee, Geoffrey? She's pretty! I want a pretty fiancee, too."

"Shut up, Will. You're two and didn't even know what a fiancee is."

He kept the younger vampire in a headlock and the two boys brawled for a while. Reinald sighed.

"Please don't mind those two vulgar youngster, miss Scarlet."

"Um...okay."

So this is the Hildrs. Certainly a visit she would never forget.

xxxxx

"Damn that old man, I hate him."

The two young vampires sat on the grass up on the hill, gazing at the now lively town, the moon shining brightly above them. Remilia chuckled softly, closing her eyes.

"What are you laughing about?"

"You have a lively family."

"Not really. It's more like...annoying."

"I mean, the last time I spoke with my father, before this morning, was about a month ago. I didn't even remember his laughing face. Mother is kind, but grandpa doesn't seem to like her too much so he send her away a lot."

Remilia hugged her knees, a small smile on her face. Geoffrey glanced at her, before switching his view back to the moonlit sky.

"Y'know, my old man was not always like that. He started to act all protective ever since mom passed away."

It was her turn to listen closely now; she hugged her knees closer.

"Some filthy humans calling themselves vampire hunters suddenly raided our home and took her away. The old man slain them all good, but it wouldn't be long until words spread about our identities as vampires. So we moved from our homeland."

Remilia inhaled deeply. She had never thought how her life would be without her mother, and Geoffrey had already endured it for long. For once, she felt that her long days staying alone at the mansion wasn't the hardest thing there was.

"Then the lord, Kurios Scarlet, accepted us. He even gave us the mansion and authority. So to be honest, we were never nobles to begin with."

"Grandpa, huh? I think I know why he did."

Remilia rolled her eyes; she had never like her grandfather, that's why.

"He's obsessed with the pure-bloods."

"So that's why. I think that's what triggered our engagement as well."

"Yeah. But this isn't so bad, right?"

"Huh?"

Remilia hopped from her sitting position, hovering slightly on the air, before her feet touch the ground. She turned around and smiled.

"Let us return home. I have a lesson to attend tonight."

Geoffrey stared at her for a while, before chuckling and standing up.

"As you wish, milady."

* * *

**Seems like I throw a lot of characters in this chapter. Oh, well. I sense dark things start approaching. *smirk***

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter and review if you may.**

**See you in the next chapter.**


	4. The day when everything changes

_"Will you be alright, mother?" _

_A young vampire perched on the edge of the bed, a worried expression on her face. The older of the two smiled and stroked her daughter's hair affectionately._

_"Of course, dear. Now run along and have some fun."_

_The little vampire nodded and gave her mother a quick kiss on the cheek, before leaving the room beaming with joy. Little that she knew, that it would be the last moment they spent together._

xxxxx

**495 years ago, the scarlet mansion—**

"Geoffrey! Geoffrey, wake up!"

I shook the sleeping vampire, attempting to wake him up. He was quite a sleeper! I shook him harder, earning a loud protesting groan.

"Wha—Remi?"

"Good, you are awake. Let us go, now."

He rubbed his eyes, sitting up, staring at me with sleepy eyes.

"Thank you for knocking before entering—"

"I have no time for sarcasm, Geoffrey."

I cut him short; I truly had no time for an idle chit-chat now. Something serious was about to happen, and I needed his help. Fast.

"Wake me up in the evening, it's still noon."

"This is urgent, I need your help."

That seemed to help him blinking away his sleepiness. He stared into my eyes now, seemingly trying to find if I simply make fun of him or really meant it. About three seconds passed by until he switched his gaze away.

"Alright, just give me five minutes."

He yawned and stretched. I smiled in satisfaction. I knew this wouldn't be so hard.

"Meet me at the front gate."

With that, I scrambled out of his room, face filled my excitement. Why you ask? Because today was the day I'd been waiting for years; nothing could stop me. Nothing! I swung the front door open and leaped outside, standing high and proud with hands on my hip. Wait. Did I forget something?

"Argh, it burns~!"

The sun. Right. I almost forgot about my biggest enemy. I quickly ran back inside and snatched my parasol. I did it one more time, the leap and all, but now with a parasol ready to shield me from the killing ray of light. That seemed to work. I huffed and smiled proudly.

"What're you doing, now?"

"Good timing, Geoffrey. Ready?"

That was more a rhetorical question though, as I quickly grasped his wrist and dragged him.

"Forward, march!"

xxxxx

"Do you like flowers that much?"

"Huh?"

I raised my head, prying my eyes away from a little something I was working on, to look at the source of the voice. Geoffrey was sitting not to far away from me, plucking one of the flowers scattered around the vast flower field. I gave him a questioning look and he sighed.

"Oh, come on. What's so urgent about picking flowers? You can buy a bouquet from the flower shop."

Ah, so that was it. I giggled and resumed on looking for flowers, taking a small yellow one near my feet, ignoring him. I heard him whined.

"Something special happened today, didn't it?"

"Something 'will', if I may say."

I heard him muttered something, looking for possiblities. I hummed happily while hearing his frustated whine.

"Are you giving up?"

"Just spill it, Remi."

Bad answer. I walked toward him and pinched his cheek, hard. He groaned in protest.

"Aren't you rude?"

"Ah, right. Pardon me, milady. May I ask for your explanation, please?"

He said that slowly, in an annoyingly mocking tone he often used, as he rubed his red cheek. His attitude didn't seem to change much over the year. Especially his sarcasm; I never succeeded to clean that off him. Before I realized I was used to it already.

"If you insist!"

I declared proudly and sat beside him.

"My little sister will be born today."

He stared at me for a while and blinked, once, twice, before letting out a small chuckle.

"That's it? And you get all worked up about it?"

"What do you mean 'that's it', it means a lot! I've been wanting a little sister to play together with."

"So just me isn't enough?"

"Well, I'll say!"

We laughed together for a good while before switching our attention back to the flowers. It was only then that I realized Geoffrey was making something with the flowers he picked earlier. My curiosity perked.

"What are you making, Geoffrey?"

"This."

He revealed his handiwork and put it on my head. I stared at him in awe.

"A flower crown. I learned it back when I helped mom at the flower shop."

I never knew he worked on a flower shop before. He seemed to notice my surprise as well and smirked.

"Now then, what do you want me to make next?"

"Can you make a flower bouquet?"

"For aunt Cecil, is it?"

"And Flandre."

"Flandre?"

I giggled as I saw his puzzled face.

"It is the name of my sister. Flandre Scarlet. It has a nice ring to it, isn't it?"

"Hmm... Okay."

He suddenly shot to his feet; the swift movement startled me a bit and I almost knocked myself off balance.

"Let's look for the best flowers. Just tell me what kind of impression you want to give and I'll find the perfect ones for it."

He offered his hand and helped me up. Putting his sarcasm away, Geoffrey did grow a lot kinder over a year though. I guessed that what helped him to escape my 'get away from me' list.

xxxxx

I ran through the crowded street, a flower bouquet on hands, heart thumping faster than my running feet. Geoffrey decided to stay on the flower field a bit longer, or rather forced to, to clean up the mess from our little visit. Well, I couldn't help plucking flowers here and there.

Anyway, as soon as the red-painted wall of my house was in vision, I picked up my speed even more. I skidded to a stop once I reached the front door, trying to catch up my breath as I glanced at the flower bouquet on my hands. Good, it was still in one piece. I switched into a walk, but still moving in a rather quick pace.

My footsteps echoed through the wide hall, as my heartbeat drummed in my ears; I had never been this excited before. But as I approached the corridor leading to my mother's room, something strange happened.

Everything froze; the sound of my thumping heart that was present until now was nowhere to be heard. Suddenly, I found myself in a dark room, with no source of light. A vampire could see in the dark though, so it didn't bother me too much. What truly bothered me was the smell of blood, old and new, scattered all over the room. A mumbled voice was heard from behind me and I turned around, only to be met by a blonde haired girl; her scarlet eyes shone in the dark, matching mine. Her face was blurry but I could still see the pained look on her eyes, and then suddenly, I was back at the corridor.

What was that? I shook my head. It felt too real to be a dream. I tried to ignore it, but somehow I couldn't push away the chill that slowly creeped up my spine. Something was off. As if to prove my theory, I saw my father stood in front the room where my mother supposedly was, his back against the door; I didn't like the dark expression he was wearing. He seemed to be lost in thought as he didn't realize my presence, so called out to him.

"Father?"

His head that was hung low, suddenly shot up as he stared at me, with an emotion I had never seen on him. And he hugged me. I was too shocked to hug him back and simply stood there.

"Remilia, please... Please wait at your room. Don't leave until I call for you, understand?"

His voice trembled and was softer than a whisper, unlike his usual stern speech. I could only nodded as he let go of me, slowly, as if I would break if he suddenly released his grasp. I tried to take a closer look on his face but failed to did so, only succeeded to let my gaze fall to the floor.

"Um, father? Before I go, can you give this to mother? Geoffrey and I made this for her and Flandre."

I brought the flower bouquet up, slightly covering my face, hoping that peeking through it gave me enough courage to meet his eyes. But I couldn't. I was too afraid. So I quickly scurried to my room as he took hold of the bouquet, didn't even dare to give him one last glance.

xxxxx

I lied on my bed, hugging my knees. I recalled the strange vision I had before, but quickly regretted it. I hugged myself tighter as I started to tremble in unknown fear. Suddenly there was a knock on my door. I rushed to my feet and swung it open; a perplexed Geoffrey was staring at me on the other end. I sighed. Somehow that took a bit load off me, and I managed to breath normally. Geoffrey entered and closed the door behind him, taking a seat on the nearby chair while I climbed back to my bed.

"...uncle Laine told me to accompany you here."

I let out a quiet hum in response, staring at the ceiling. We stayed like that, for I didn't know how long. Suddenly I heard a loud slam and bolted back to a sitting position.

"_Where is it!"_

A familiar voice of anger was heard and I took a quick breath. I could sense Geoffrey tensed up himself as he spoke in a whisper.

"It's Lord Kurios."

"Grandpa?"

I managed to let out a small whisper before jumping to my feet and stormed out, knocking Geoffrey out of the way as I did. He didn't recover quick enough to run after me.

"Remi! Remi, wait!"

I ignored him and ran as fast as my feet could get. As if it wasn't enough, I crouched and stretched my wings to full length, speeding up. I couldn't even remember how many servants I crashed into as I flew through the corridor, heading to the source of the voice. And then, the door to my mother's room stood in front of me.

"Ah, what a hideous creature. We have to get rid of it right away."

Grandpa's voice.

"Please father, reconsider."

It was father this time. I gulped and took hold of the doorknob.

"Reconsider, you say? Nonsense! Didn't you see how that little abomination ripped itself free out of her?"

"She is just a newborn baby."

"A monster!"

"SHE IS MY DAUGHTER!"

Right at that moment I turned the doorknob and swung it open. Father and grandpa quickly turned their head toward me. Father's furious face quickly softened as he saw me, and he whispered in disbelief.

"...Remilia?"

I didn't move, simply staring at the whole scene, and at the small body of a baby between them. Grandpa spatted in disgust and approached the small bed.

"Time to finish what I come here for."

He took the baby by the leg, letting it dangle freely on the air

"No! Flandre!"

I shouted, and as if in cue I heard her cried. The old man suddenly tensed and threw Flandre away in alarm, and then somehow, everything seemed to move in a slow motion. I saw how she clenched her hand, and how a servant that was standing beside grandpa burst into a pool of blood. Father quickly caught Flan on his arm, but it wasn't enough to quiet her down. She clenched her palms again; more and more pool of blood was formed, until nobody but us remained in that room. She quieted down eventually, after father whispered something I couldn't hear to her ear. I switched my gaze back to grandpa; his face wore the same aloofness as ever.

"Hand me the baby, Laine."

"Flandre is my daughter, and the last memories that Cecil left. I will never hand her over to you."

"Yes, yes, it was her fault wasn't it?"

He chuckled darkly, his head hanged to his side like a broken puppet. I clinged to my father's long coat, afraid of the strange aura and creepy smile he was giving.

"Oh... the impure blood of the former human... this is why I told you not to choose her, Laine... Ah, yes... Cecilia Scarlet has died and the baby died with her... I cannot let anyone know that such abomination ever born under the Scarlet name..."

"I never regret my decision, father."

Suddenly his face crunched as he heard that; the sickening smile that was there turned into fury. I grasped on my father's coat tighter, but father didn't wavered even a bit.

"These are the daughters that Cecil and I treasured the most. I will never give them up."

"LAINE SCARLET!"

His voice boomed and I closed my eyes. Father pushed me behind him, hiding me under his long coat.

"If nobody knew about her, will it be enough for you?"

The atmosphere quieted down. I peeked from behind father, hugging him as I shivered. After a long silence, grandpa huffed.

"Expand the basement and lock that wicked creature on the deepest part."

He turned toward the door, his eyes fixed on me as he passed beside us; I hid myself further.

"Heed my words, Laine. _It_ shall never leave the basement at all cost, and nobody but us shall know of _its _existence. A group of magicians will enforce the room with the strongest barrier there is, and I will assign special guards to monitor the seal."

He stopped as he turned the doorknob and gave us one last glance.

"From now on, _that thing_ is our 'dirty little secret'; a pandora box that shall never be opened..."

xxxxx

I slumped back to my room, a lifeless look on my eyes. I was quite surprised to see Geoffrey waiting for me there, sitting on the same chair with a slight concern on his face.

"Took you long enough. And what with the long face?"

I felt tears threatened to come out, but it never did; I bit my lips and clenched my fist until my knuckles turned white. After I regained my voice, I raised my face to meet Geoffrey's; determination flaring from my scarlet eyes.

"Geoffrey, teach me how to fight. That is one thing your family was known for, true?"

I had to protect Flandre, my beloved little sister, from now and forever. And for that, I need power. A power greater than anything; a power strong enough to govern and bend this miserable fate.

* * *

**Happy New Year 2013, everyone! And this is my new year's gift to you: chapter 3 and chapter 4 in a day update.**

**Okay, so I started with dark things first time in the year. But anyway, Flan finally make an entrance! From now on the tragedy will start. *smirk***

**Enjoy the chapter though, and review if you may.**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	5. Gibberish Talk

_The first thing I could remember was a pair of scarlet orbs. Furious, and then full of sorrow. After that, all I knew and saw was darkness. _

xxxxx

—_**Beginning of an end: Flandre's Side—**_

Flan. Flandre. Flandre Scarlet. That was how the two of them called me. So it was my name, I guess. Everything was dark around here. But they said vampires could see in the dark. And I could see in the dark. That means I am a vampire! But what does a vampire do?

"Flandre, are you awake? I brought your meal."

"Onee-sama!"

I tackled her happily. Her? Well, the one with lavender hair here was my older sister. Her name was Remilia. Every once in a while she came down to play with me, sometimes with my father as well. I loved both them so much.

"Flan, please be patient and wait on the table."

I realized I had been snuggling her until now. So I let go and eagerly waited on my dining table in the center of the room, legs dangling off the chair. Onee-sama sighed and put a tray of food on the table. A steak dripping with blood! One of my favorite. I quickly reached for it with my hand but Onee-sama swatted my hand away.

"Flan, use your knife and fork."

I tilted my head.

"But, but, if I don't hurry catch it, it will escape!"

"Food couldn't run away."

No way! I stared at her in disbelief.

"But the last time it ran from me! The one with four legs that goes 'oink, oink'!"

"They fed you living livestock!"

Onee-sama's voice roared and I shrunk in fear, letting my hands fell to my side. I saw her sinked on her chair, pinching her temple. She looked troubled. Was it my fault? I tried to say something to cheer her up.

"...it was kinda fun, though..."

She peeked from behind her hand and sighed. And after a while, she stroked my hair.

"I will inform father about this. From now on, your food will never...run away from you again. So it them slowly, okay?"

I nodded and reached for the knife and fork, slowly eating my meal.

xxxxx

I was living in a basement; I acknowledged it after a while. That was why everything was dark. I knew because everything big sis and father told me, about the sky and the moon, was different from what I saw everyday. So one day I asked father, and he hesitantly told me. That I lived deep underground, in the basement of our mansion. I couldn't get out, he said, not now. Someday. But when was it? His face always looked sad when I asked about it, so I decided to stop asking. I couldn't stand seeing him like that.

"Do you want to see the night sky so much, Flandre?"

I opened my mouth, but hesitate, and switched my gaze to the ground.

"But...I must not go out, right, Father? I don't want to trouble you..."

That was true. He always seemed sad and distant, even when he smiled. It was hurt to see it sometimes. If staying here could lessen his burden, I didn't mind.

"Besides, onee-sama always come here to play with me and tell me stories."

I brought my face back up, a bright smile on my face. He chuckled slightly and crouched to pat me.

"You don't have to get out to meet the star; I will bring the star down here for you."

I stared at him, dumbfounded. He rose to his full height and stretched his both arms upward.

"Close your eyes, Flan."

I did as I was told, tightly keep my eye shut with both hands. I heard something rumbled. After the rumbling stopped, I felt myself being lifted off the ground.

"You can open them now."

Once again I obeyed. I glanced down and saw father put me on his shoulder, giving him a questioning look.

"Look up there."

I switched my gaze upward and was surprised with what I saw.

"The stars! Father, there are stars up there!"

I heard him laughed and I did the same, raising my hands as I pretending to reach it. I had never seen something like that outside of a book; so glittery and beautiful, I felt like I can stare at it forever! I slept peacefully that day, dreaming of the stars that watching me all the time. Maybe someday, I could see the true night sky, together with father and big sister.

xxxxx

I wonder why my wings looked different from father and big sister. But big sister said it was beautiful, like a tree with jewels as its leaves. So I didn't bother. Even though it was hard to fly with them; I could only float a few feet before collapsing in exhaustion. If I could finally fly properly with them, maybe someday I could reach for the stars up there, and brought one back for big sister and father.

xxxxx

Did you know, there were _eyes_ everywhere? One day I told big sister about it, but she simply gave me a confused look, before excusing herself and left. I was so sad back then. So I never said anything about them again, afraid that she might leave. After that, everything turned back like it usually was.

xxxxx

"What is that, onee-sama?"

"This? Why don't you come here and take a look?"

I carefully approached the foreign item, eyes fixed on it. Big sister sighed and crossed her arms.

"It is alright, Flan. Come here."

I walked in a faster pace, but still unsure about it. I hid myself behind her and narrowed my eyes, staring at it.

"So, what is that?"

"It is a telescope, for viewing the star."

"I can see the star without it."

Big sister dragged me away from behind her and put me in front of the telescope.

"Try using it first."

How? I sighed and fiddle with it. If it was used to view something, then shouldn't I put my eyes somewhere? I searched for any such places. Maybe here? I tried to look through it and gasped.

"Onee-sama, the star looks so close!"

"...so it works?"

"Hm?"

"Never mind. How is it, Flan?"

"...it is kinda blurry."

I mumbled in disappointment, and glanced back at big sister. She seemed to think about something, before heading for the door.

"I will ask father about how to use it, but he is busy today. Would you be a good girl and patiently waited until tomorrow?"

"Okay."

"Oh, and happy birthday, Flan."

She smiled and put her hand on the huge steel door. The door groaned a bit, before opening itself. I saw some familiar faces on the other end. They were the guards, or so father told me. They also the one that sometimes brought me my food, but their food had never been good. They glanced at me with a strange look before I saw big sister scolded them. After a while, the door slammed shut once again and I was back on my on.

So it was my birthday again, today? I wonder how old I am now. Hmm... I thought I count them somewhere. I skipped to a certain part of the thick wall and found the scribble I made. I took my crayon and drew another line.

"One hundred and...ninety-five."

I put my hand on hips and smiled at it proudly. But I didn't have time for this! I ran back to where my birthday present was and fumbled with it once again. I giggled.

"Father would be surprised if can find the way to use it myself!"

I must showed him that I was no longer a helpless little child. Maybe he could finally find a way to let me go outside after this. Just thinking about it made me happy. But it wasn't as easy as I thought. After I didn't know how long, I gave up and let myself fell to the cold ground, growling in frustration. I saw the _eye _on the telescope staring at me. I puffed my cheek.

"What are you looking at?"

In a moment of instinct, I crushed that _eye_, and then, somehow, the telescope bursted into nothingness. I sat back up, staring at its remnants in disbelief. What happened? Did I just broke it? I started to panic and gathered the broken pieces. The sharp edges dug into my skin but I didn't care; my wounds was closed as quick as it opened. My vain attempt didn't bring anything, and once again I stared at them with horror in my eyes. I snapped my eyes away from it and saw the _eyes _around me stared deeply at me, as if suspecting me. I gritted my teeth and shouted.

"What are you all looking at! Stop looking at me!"

And I rose to my feet, crushing any _eyes _I saw. As I did that, everything around me exploded into pieces. When I came to, everything was already gone. My bed, my dining table, my toys; everything was nothing but tiny little pieces now. But the _eyes _were still there, staring at me from the dark. I fell to my knees, staring back at them in horror.

"..you..broke everything..."

"_Oh no, you are the one who broke them."_

A strange voice was heard and I clutched my head.

"No, you're wrong—"

"_You were the one who crushed the 'eye', and you broke them."_

"No! I didn't mean to—"

"_But you did."_

"NO!"

I felt my wings burned and I screamed in agony.

"—an...flan...calm down..."

I faintly heard father's voice, but I couldn't see anything but the _eyes. _I screamed again, this time in horror, and I crushed them on and on. How long did I do that I don't remember anymore; the paranoia filled me that I lost track of everything. Suddenly, I felt someone embraced me and I calmed down, and the _eyes_ slowly disappeared. I blinked in confusion.

"...are you alright, Flandre?"

It was father. I nodded slowly and clutched his shirt, burying myself on the red fabric and starting to sob loudly.

"...you must be very scared...it is alright, now..."

I felt him stroking my hair gently, like he always did. Something wet fell to my cheek, mixed with my tears. Did he cry, too? I wiped my wet cheek. It was red. I tensed and looked up at his face, eyes filled with horror once again.

"Father...?

He simply smiled.

"..father, you're covered in blood..."

It was then that I could realized that he hugged me with only an arm, and that his other arm was nowhere to be seen. I started to panic once more but he patted my head.

"...this seems...bad...somehow I couldn't regenerate..."

"I—I didn't mean to—"

I slowly backed away but he held me in place, embracing me tighter.

"...you're a good child...I know you didn't mean it Flandre..."

My tears started to flow again, and I hugged him back, gently, afraid that I might break him again.

"...listen, Flandre...that _eyes_...your power...is stronger than anything in this world..."

He shakily brought up my right palm.

"...such great power...come with great responsibility...would you promise me not use it carelessly..?"

I nodded, slowly, tears still freely flowing down my face. He sighed contentedly after that, and whispered.

"...I am relieved..."

I felt his body went limp. I tried to hold him and shook him a few times, but he didn't move. And then, suddenly, he disappeared.

"...father?"

Only silence greeted me.

"Father, where are you?"

Still nothing. I started to feel sick.

"_He's gone."_

The sound echoed in my mind and I clutched my head, screaming again. The _eyes _ returned. I glared at them and brought my hand toward them, but stopped mid-movement. I cried instead, hugging myself tightly as I curled into a ball; cursing myself, and my newfound power.

xxxxx

Everything felt dull. Even the starry sky that twinkled happily up there, that stared down at me, as if mocking me. But I didn't even care. My body felt heavy with guilt. I didn't feel like doing anything; I wanted nothing more than just letting myself rot and die here. My wish was for once granted. I heard the guard knocked on the steel door and shouted.

"Y'hear that, lil' monster. Lord Kurios finally decided to execute you!"

I smiled and chuckled softly, closing my eyes, waiting for the end. I fell asleep not long after, tired of everything. My dreamless state was disturbed as I heard a loud explosion from outside, and the sound of restless footsteps in front of my door. I rose to my feet and rushed to the cold steel door, putting my ears on it as I tried to get a better hearing.

"The main hall, hurry to the main hall!

**'The young mistress—lady Remilia had gone mad!"**

"_...Onee-sama?"_

* * *

**Hello, and welcome back! Was this chapter kinda bizarre? Ah well, it served for the title 'gibberish talk'.**

**This chapter was inspired by a touhou doujin 'Here no more' by Demour402. You may wanna give it a shot.**

**Anyways, C****liffhanger! Stay tune for the next chapter, and enjoy!**


	6. The Girl who Defied Fate

_Ever since that day I promised _

_to become stronger, _

_to never shed any tears, _

_to acknowledge fear no more._

_I had killed my weak self and abandoned my foolish thought._

_Eventually I obtained this power over fate, _

_but even then__, _

_could I ever find the happy ending I sought?_

xxxxx

—_**Beginning of an end: Remilia's Side—**_

"...I yield."

I pretended not to hear that, as I brought my spear to my side and bent my body, ready to throw the finishing blow. Not long after, it flew off my hand and chase after its target in the speed that even eyes couldn't follow.

"I said I yield! Remi!"

The spear struck the ground only a few inch away from the supposedly target, and I smirked. Actually, it didn't miss at all; he wasn't even my target from the start. I crossed my arms, still floating on the air, gazing down at the silver-haired boy that was sitting not so graciously on the ground. He stared back at me with a slightly shocked face.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

"Oh, but I didn't, did I? 'Gungnir always struck its target, knowing no fail.' You should know it the best since you were the one who taught me how to summon it."

"Hmph, well spoken."

I chuckled and slowly descended, helping him back to his feet. He sighed and took my hand. I studied him a bit as he did. It was strange, I thought. The first time I started sparring with him I would be the one sprawling on the ground. But nowadays, the role seemed to be reversed.

"Have you gotten weaker, Geoffrey?"

"I haven't. It's just that you have some strange way of predicting my move. You can see the future or something?"

"Um, well... I rather call it 'intuition'."

That was actually a lie. I could somehow predict the future, or should I say, see the upcoming fate. It would be a little exaggerating to call it 'manipulation of fate' though, as I could only see and choose which red string I wanted to connect with the current time; my choices were limited to the fixed possibilities. I guessed this strange power had always been within me, but stayed dormant for a long time. And what triggered it was—

"Hello? Earth to Remilia?"

I blinked myself back to reality. Geoffrey was waving his hand in front of my face, gaining my attention. As I took a closer look, he had this annoying smirk on his face.

"How rare to see you spacing out like that; almost feels like the old Remilia is back."

"What do you mean, Geoffrey? I am me, and have always been."

I noticed he about to say something but was stopped mid-sentence as the clock on the tower rung loudly, signaling the midnight. I quickly turned and walked back to the mansion, waving slightly to dismiss him.

"Hey, Remi!"

"Yes?"

I stopped and glanced for a while. I caught a bit disgust on his face, before he shook his head.

"Never mind."

I nodded and proceeded on my way, heading to the kitchen to fetch a meal for a certain someone waiting for me underground.

xxxxx

The walk to the basement always disturbed me. The cold and damp atmosphere, the stench of rotten flesh and blood that never disappeared; it made me sick. But disturbed me the most was the fact that the one locked down the cellar, was none other but my little sister. I shook my head to dismiss my building anger, composing myself as I met the guards. They bowed as they recognised me, stepping aside as I held my hand against the door. With a little magic trick my father taught me, I disabled all the seals around the room. The guards always readied their swords as I did, and I spat in disgust. I always hated how their eyes saw my sister as if she was some kind of abomination.

Nevertheless, I ignored them and stepped inside. Holding the tray of food on my hands, I called for her.

"Flandre, are you awake? I brought your meal."

"Onee-sama!"

Suddenly I felt someone tackled me from the front; I struggled hard to keep the food from spilling. My little sister, Flandre Scarlet, hung on my torso as if her life depended on it. I secretly smiled at her cute behavior.

"Flan, please be patient and wait on the table."

Much to my relief, she let go and eagerly waited on the dining table. She was such a child, I thought, as I sighed and put the tray on the table. Her eyes was glittery as I revealed a steak dripping with blood. It was one of her favorite, I knew. In one swift movement, to my surprise, her right hand shot out to grab the meat. I instinctly swatted her hand away.

"Flan, use your knife and fork."

She tilted her head, pouting a bit.

"But, but, if I don't hurry catch it, it will escape!"

"Food couldn't run away."

She seemed startled by the fact, which confused me.

"But the last time it ran from me! The one with four legs that goes 'oink, oink'!"

_What?_

"They fed you living livestock!"

My previously fading anger shot high and I slammed the table. Flandre shrunk under my gaze and I quickly tried to compose myself, sinking to my chair. How could they... Just how much lower could they see Flan? I clenched my teeth in rage.

"...it was kinda fun, though..."

Her small voice brought me back and I sighed once again. For now, I could only try to cheer her up, and I softly stroked her hair.

"I will inform father about this. From now on, your food will never...run away from you again. So eat them slowly, okay?"

She nodded and reached for the knife and fork. I smiled as I watched her eating her meal slowly, while my mind wandered on how I should punish those disrespectful servants. Well, they had better be prepared for their demise.

xxxxx

"_Hey, onee-sama."_

"_What is it, Flan?"_

"_Why do my wings looked different from yours and father?"_

"_...that means you are unique, Flan. No other up there has wings such yours."_

"_There isn't?"_

"_Yes. And they are beautiful and so colorful. Like a tree with jewels as its leaves."_

"_It is? It is! Hehe, Thank you onee-sama."_

"_You're welcome."_

"_Maybe, that's why I can see those eyes?"_

"_Eyes?"_

"_Yes, onee-sama, there are eyes everywhere! Can't you see them?"_

"_...Flan, I have to go now."_

"_Wait, what's wrong onee-sama?"_

"_..."_

"_Oh well, I know you are busy. Sorry..."_

"_..."_

"_See you tomorrow, then..."_

xxxxx

"Here it is."

I looked at the telescope that Geoffrey brought in slight awe. Fumbling with it, I asked him.

"Is it still working?"

"I don't know, I never used them myself. Maybe we should check it first."

"Never mind."

I quickly carried it on my hands and headed out of his room, heading further inside the mansion. Geoffrey followed me hesitantly, before stopping on his track.

"Watching the stars indoor are we now?"

"In the basement to be precise."

I heard him snorted, before snickering.

"Sure, the lens could see through the ceiling."

"Thank you for your sarcasm Geoffrey, but I am seriously taking this to the basement. Father had scattered artificial stars with his magic there and I am giving this to Flan so she could watch them closer. So if you'll excuse me, since you never wanted to go to the basement anyway, I have something important to attend. Thank you and see you later."

With that, I turned on my heels and headed to the basement. Had Geoffrey been seeing Flan with the same eyes as the others? That mere thought was enough to make myself boiling with rage and pain. I brushed that thought away and opened the huge steel door I knew too much, finding Flan sitting on the floor, playing with her dolls. She quickly ran toward me as she noticed me. I smiled and set the telescope on the floor. Suddenly, she stopped on her track.

"What is that, onee-sama?"

"This? Why don't you come here and take a look?"

She approached ever so carefully, eyes fixed on the telescope. I sighed and crossed my arms.

"It is alright, Flan. Come here."

She walked in a faster pace, but changed her course to hide behind me, eyes narrowed.

"So, what is that?"

"It is a telescope, for viewing the star."

"I can see the star without it."

This is troublesome. I dragged her away from behind me and set her in front of the telescope.

"Try using it first."

I watched her fumbling with it for a while before finding the eyehole. Then she gasped in alarm.

"Onee-sama, the star looks so close!"

...so it works? I mumbled too loudly to myself.

"Hm?"

"Never mind. How is it, Flan?"

"...it is kinda blurry."

I see... I didn't know how to use it myself. Maybe father? But he was busy today. After a few mental arguments I sighed and headed to the exit.

"I will ask father about how to use it, but he is busy today. Would you be a good girl and patiently waited until tomorrow?"

"Okay."

"Oh, and happy birthday, Flan."

I smiled and left, couldn't wait myself for tomorrow to come.

xxxxx

I jolted awake with cold sweats on my face, breathing heavily from my nightmare. I sat on my bed, trying to calm myself. It was no dream; I knew it better than anyone else. It was a glimpse of the upcoming fate. And the only way to change it was—

"Are you alright, Remilia?"

I snapped my head toward the source of the voice. It was father. I took a deep breath, trying to find my voice.

"I am fine, father. Are you going to the basement as of now?"

"Indeed."

"I will come with you."

_The only way to change that fate is—_

I clenched my fist as I followed suit behind him, heading toward the basement. Tonight the guards were dismissed in accordance to father's order, which increase my uneasiness. The cold steel door creaked open, and for once, a cold chill called fear invaded myself for the first time in this one hundred and ninety-five years.

_Stood in the middle of the room was the young blonde vampire, with blood red eyes, screaming in agony. Her rainbow colored wings grew, and the jewels on them turned into unbreakable thorns, entwining the fragile girls. And as she clenched her hands, everything around her disappeared._

The fate flashed before my eyes and I rushed into the scene without hesitation, claws ready to strike. I replayed the images of that fate in my head, trying to find any loophole for avoiding it.

_The helpless little girl with monstrous power would obliterate everything she loved, without her own will. And to stop her—_

Everything happened according to the fate I saw; what would be broken, how, when, and where. I swiftly dodged any blow and closing in to her.

_To stop her—_

I was only a few feet away from her now.

_**The older sister shall end the miserable life of the younger one.**_

I halted, claws barely slicing her neck. What? What kind of end was that? I scanned through the thread of fate for another posibilities.

But there was none.

My mind was distracted that I didn't realized her own claws dugged into my chest and sent me flying to the far away wall. My whole body felt numb from simply her one blow.

_To stop her—kill—the older sister shall kill—she would obliterate everything—_

There had to be another way. A happy ending that I sought; there had to be somewhere!

—_end her miserable life—thus the little girl shall never know pain or inflict pain—_

No. There is another way. There MUST be another way!

—_kill—kill her—end her misery—kill—kill—for a better good—_

"SHUT UP!"

"Remilia, get down!"

Suddenly I was shoved away, out of the room of slaughter. The last thing I saw was my father's towering figure, with a sad small on his face, before everything turned black.

Xxxxx

The first thing I saw as I opened my eyes was the familiar ceiling of my room, and Geoffrey that was sitting on the nearby chair, with book on his hand.

"You're finally awake, Remi."

"..."

I sat and flinched in pain; despite my ability to regenerate, the wound that Flan inflicted was hard to recover. Geoffrey sighed and closed his book, setting it away on the desk, his face looked troubled.

"How do I put it... Uncle Laine..."

"He is dead."

I stated, matter of factly, but actually my throat felt like burning as I said it. I had failed. I shutted my eyes tightly. This wasn't supposed to happen! I clenched my hands until my nails dug into my palms, shivering. Father has... And then Flandre... For a long time I once again felt tears threatened to come out.

Geoffrey patted my head, sighing again.

"I'm sorry for what happened, Remi. But I promise you, from now on, you don't have anything to worry about anymore."

"...I see."

My shivering stopped and I opened my eyes, staring deeply at him.

"As father has finally out of the way, grandpa decided to execute Flan now. Am I right, Geoffrey?"

He didn't answer. Instead, he headed for the door.

"Lord Kurios called for me. He told me to substitute him on attending some foreign affairs, as he wanted to quickly head back to look after the execution. So I might not be here to accompany you when the time come, Remi."

"You don't even feel sorry for her, huh, Geoffrey?"

He didn't flinch even a bit, and closed the door behind him. I stared coldly at the door, where he just left, and rose to my feet. Slowly heading outside.

xxxxx

There was a party on the main hall. The servants and alike was laughing their heart off, as if celebrating the end of a long war. I approached one of them; he didn't seem sober, much like the rest of them.

"You seems very happy? What might have happened, I wonder?"

"Yeah, finally. Finally that little monster in the basement will be killed! Ah, that give a load off my mind. I had been afraid when she would break free."

"I see, I see... That's why you were so happy?"

A smiled stretched on my eyes. Before long, it turned into a sickening grin.

"Shall I join the party?"

In a moment of impulse, I reached for his head and snapped his neck like a chopstick. Some of them sobered up and looked at me in horror. I glanced back at them, prying the head I was holding off the body and held it on my hand like some kind of trophy.

_That night, all the other vampires will be slaughtered by her hands. And none would be spared. For if nobody accepted the little girl, nobody there shall be. _

Ah... The moon is so red... I snapped my head upward; my insane laughter filled the entire hall.

"_**This shall be a fun night."**_

* * *

_****_**And...that's it, folks. I hope Remi's side clear off most of the questioning part from the previous chapter.**

**Anyways, this chapter was inspired by touhou doujin 'Gungnir' by stripe pattern. Another awesome work with full colors.**

**Enjoy the story everyone! Review if you may, and see you in the next chapter!**


	7. A Crazed Festival Under The Scarlet Moon

_Tonight, under the scarlet moon, the majestic red mansion drown in the sea of blood. _

xxxxx

**300 years ago, the town where the vampires dwell—**

The town of the night was as restless as could be. Footsteps here and there, bone crunching, blood splashing; the little town was engulfed in a mad festival of slaughter and death. And up on the moonlit sky, a young demon, with red stains covering its whole front, grinning down at the spectacles with a sickening smile. And with an unearthly cry, it struck down anything it saw, tearing them with its claws and fangs. Its movement stopped abruptly as a gunshot was heard, and a bullet stuck deep into its skull.

"Sentry boy, status report."

The man spoke quietly, hands still gripping on his gun tightly, eyes fixed on the monstrosity in front of him; a monstrosity that was once a young lady he served. He gritted his teeth and spoke louder.

"Oi, sentry boy!"

"Uh, yes! More than half of the servants had been wiped out, and the other family of vampires had been noted as gone. The young mistress must have targeted the vampires instead of us servants. If we run now…"

"Tell everyone that left to stand their ground until Lord Kurios and the Hildrs return."

The young boy beside him stood shakily, clenching his fist.

"Are you nuts!? What can a familiar like us do? We will end up getting kil—"

He stopped mid-sentence as his body fell to the ground, his head nowhere to be seen. The vampire from before appeared in front of the fallen body, its own head snapped to the side.

"Yes, yes. He should be grateful that I granted his last wish. Beside, I think I will do the same to the rest of you familiars if you don't step aside. And you said the old man is coming back with his cronies? Good. It will safe my time hunting him down."

The male familiar stood his ground, watching as the vampire tilted its head back to place, while its smile stretched once again. His stern gaze softened and he lowered his gun.

"Lady Remilia, please return to your room."

The vampire was caught off guard by his reply, her shining red eyes regained their sanity for a moment, before she growled and returned to her feral instinct. Her sharp claws sliced his neck in an instant, sending another dead body to the pile of corpses. The young vampire fell silent, raising her face to meet the scarlet moon. Slowly, she fell to her knees; her torn mind was beyond tired, and the lone battle had started to take a toll on her physically. But a slight vision of a certain blonde vampire brought her back to her feet, and she smiled softly.

"Wait for me, Flandre."

Her silent remedy was cut short; a spear rained down from the sky and she jolted back to reality, quick enough to jump away from the impending blow.

"What do we have here, hm? Have I grown senile enough to mistake my town that is supposed to be here?"

Remilia snapped her head upward, her furious scarlet orbs pierced the night sky to fall on a certain figure. She snarled.

"Kurios Scarlet…"

"That is not how you suppose to address your grandfather, Remilia. Have you forgotten your manner?"

She ignored the comment and charged upward, completely blinded with anger and grudge. The old vampire didn't flinched even a bit. Suddenly, out of nowhere, another figure appeared and shoved the younger vampire away, sending her back stumbling on the ground.

"Remilia, stop this madness right now!"

He shouted, seemingly hesitating to bring his spear against her. The other vampire didn't care though, and she readied her claws to strike back. The oldest Scarlet sighed in disgust.

"Aldrich. Reinald. Teach this young lady a bit of manner, will you?"

"But Lord Kurios—"

"Father."

Reinald Hildr patted on his father's shoulder, shaking his head. The older Hildr gave up and brought his both arms to his side, gathering his power.

"I'm sorry, Remilia."

_Divine Spear: Spear the Gungnir_

Thousands of spears materialized themselves and rained down the lone figure on the ground. Her shrieking cry could be heard as they pierced her flesh mercilessly. The ever so prideful Lord Kurios didn't seem to be interested even a bit; he floated under the scarlet moon with all his arrogance, watching the whole scene unfold with ice cold gaze. As the dust cleared off to show the pitiful figure of the young vampire pinned to the ground, he stroked his long beard like a teacher watching their foolish pupil enduring their punishment.

"Have you learned your lesson, Remilia? Now be a good girl and stay there while I finish what I come here for. I believe the real abomination is still down the basement."

"You bastard!"

Remilia thrashed wildly, trying to break free from the spears keeping her down. Her own blood splattered around her as the action started to peel her flesh slowly. Lord Kurios sighed.

"Continue her lesson, Aldrich."

Closing his eyes, the head of the Hildrs summoned his spears again, sending them back to strike the vampire. But they never hit her; out of the blue, they disappeared. Time seemed to stop back then, as an unknown figure emerged from the broken stairs of the basement. It blinked once, then twice, trying to adjust its vision to the moonlit night. Everyone froze, even the young Scarlet that was thrashing ever so wildly before. All of their eyes fixed on the blond vampire that just arrived to the scene; the crystals on her wings jingled softly on the dead of the night. She brought her gaze upward, finally noticing the other vampires, and took a deep breath.

"Stop bullying onee-sama, you meanie!"

Right after that, she crouched beside her sister, worry painted all over her face.

"Onee-sama, are you alright?"

"Flandre, you…How do you…"

"Oh, I make a hole on the gate. Then some scary people hit me and stabbed me. It hurt a lot, but I'm fine now. I was angry though, so I _kyu _them all, and they go _boom_."

Remilia didn't know what to say anymore. She simply stared, dumbfounded, and flinched slightly when the younger vampire get a spear out of her flesh.

"Lord Kurios, she…who…"

"Summon your spear again, Aldrich! Before she kill us all!"

Remilia tensed up as she heard that, but Flandre didn't seem to be as shocked as her sister. She held her sister back down instead and tore one of her own wings off, brandished it on her right hand like some kind of a sword.

"Taboo…Laevateinn…"

In one mighty swing, the whole sky was engulfed in flame, burning everything in her sight. And just with that, the two Scarlet were left alone in the empty ruins of the town. Flandre turned to check on her sister again, only to find the girl staring back with tears falling down her cheek silently. She quickly rushed back to her side.

"Onee-sama? Onee-sama, is something wrong? Are you hurt?"

The younger Scarlet was taken aback as her sister suddenly embraced her, sobbing quietly as she did. She softly hugged her back, carefully as not to hurt her precious onee-sama.

"It's over… It's over now, Flan…"

"…yeah."

The two vampire held each other for a while, with only the moon watching over them. Little that they know, another pair of Scarlet orbs were watching them from afar.

_Taboo: Laevateinn_

"Onee-sama, look out!"

Remilia skidded on the hard ground, shoved away from the deadly burst of fire that was only a strand of hair away from burning her to death. She quickly brought her face back up in panic, trying to find her little sister.

"Flandre? Flandre, where are you!"

"That was a close call, if I didn't clench the _eye_ on the right moment."

Remilia froze, her voice caught on her throat as she stared at the source of the voice in horror. Her grandfather, with grotesque wings and seven-colored crystals hanging on them sprouting from his back. The end of his long robe and beard was singed, but he was there, all in one piece. His face crunched in disgust.

"You insolence! How much do you think all of this will cost you? To make me use this power and call back these disgusting wings again."

He brought his hand up; his immense magic gathered around his palm. Remilia snapped her head according to his aiming, eyes-widened as she saw her little sister on the ground, slowly recovering from the burn mark she got from the previous attack. Suddenly, a chill crept up her spine.

"Flandre, run!"

She shouted on the top of her lung. But it was too late. Two silver shards flew, piercing the blond vampire on her palms. She screamed in agony as the metal burned her flesh through her wounds. Kurios Scarlet cackled, enjoying the torture before his eyes. He walked slowly toward his source of hate, kicking the pitiful vampire on the face.

"You took everything from me, yes? My once ever so obedient son. My town that I nursed oh so carefully from way back. And what have you done to make my little Remilia wavered so much? You hideous creature; nothing left for you but death. Why are you even born, anyway? Nobody ever wanted you."

He kept on kicking and stepping on her as his rambling continued, ignoring the little girl silent plea, while the older of the Scarlet sister trying to push her body to move, only to fail miserably. After a while he stopped the torture and gazed on the little girl's bruised face, a sickening smile on his face.

"Just killing you wouldn't be enough. Oh, what to do, what to do. I know. I will strip you out of your vampiric power, but not of all your weaknesses. And then I will torture you to death. Doesn't it sound amazing?"

Kurios Scarlet stepped away a bit, quietly whispering the spell under his breath. A huge magic circle appeared before him, engulfing the blond vampire in its scarlet shade. His sickening grin stretched even further.

Remilia pounded her fist to the ground, clenching her fangs. She closed her eyes tightly in shame.

"_Power… I need power!"_

She opened her eyes again to meet her blood stained palm. Suddenly, something clicked in her mind and she shakily rose to her feet. The male Scarlet had almost finished his ritual. Absorbed by his own crazed satisfaction, he didn't realize the girl behind him. She charged with all her might, stabbing her grandfather on his back with her claws.

"Remilia? What are you doing?"

She knew that he didn't need dodge, because she knew that his wound would regenerate fast enough. She knew that he would _think _that way. His eyes widened as blood rushed out of his mouth. He cracked his neck to his side, staring at the younger vampire in absolute bemuse.

"Remilia… you…"

"Blood… Don't you think manipulating them is quite a feat?"

She took a breath, trying to find her power to speak clearly. A small smile crept up her exhausted face.

"See you in hell, grandpa."

With that, the once Lord of the Scarlet burst into a pool of blood. Remilia fell to the ground; her body had been drained from its last spasm of power, but her consciousness refused to give up just yet. She dragged herself limply over to her unconscious sister, grasping the shard that pinned the vampire down. She flinched as the silver burned her skin, but didn't stop until she got them all off.

The morning sun rose, signaling the end of the nightmare rhapsody filled with insanity. Remilia dragged both of them over the rubble, shielding themselves from the burning ray. The two Scarlets huddled close, tucked under the shade of the ruins of the one they once called home. Waiting for the unknown future to unfold before them.

xxxxx

_We have lost everything we believe in. No roof to shield ourselves and no souls to listen to our tale. Still, we have each other. And as long as we are together, that is all we need to move on._

* * *

**Hello and nice to see you all again in this new year.**_  
_

**So... I threw a lot of blood in this chapter, huh? It was needed in this story, yeah. This chapter also signaled the end of the first arc. Next, there will be a brand new setting; a brand new face to meet, a brand new place, and a brand new situation. So sit still and wait patiently.  
**

**Enjoy the story and see you in the next chapter~  
**


	8. --Intermezzo--

**FIRST ARC: BIRTH **

**END**

_Flip._

"_Eh?"_

_Flip, flip._

"_Eh? No way!"_

_Rustle, rustle_

"_There rest of the pages is blank? Hmm…"_

_Stare…_

"_A-R-C. Arc. Arc? It's the same as part, right? There must be another arc."_

_Close._

_Open._

"_Oh?"_

**SECOND ARC: SLUMBER **

"_The words appears! Yay!"_

_Rustle_

"_Mukyu?"_

"_Is something wrong, Patchouli-sama?"_

"…_maybe just my imagination. I think I heard someone there."_

"_Maybe Marisa-san came?"_

"_No. If it was her, she would break through the main gate in a blast. Never mind. Get me my tea, Koakuma."_

…

…_._

_Sigh_

"_That was close…"_

_Sneak, sneak_

_Flip_

"_Okay. Let' continue."_

**SECOND ARC: SLUMBER **

**BEGIN**


	9. The New Life

_"Look at her beautiful features; pale white skin, lavender hair, not to mention her striking scarlet eyes. Well, I can say she is the best asset I have. What do you say, sire?"_

_The man inspected the little girl on display, tapping his chin as he observed her every last details, eyes still searching for a right decision. The trader seemed to notice this as he opened his mouth once again to butter up his customer._

_"But beauty isn't the only thing she has, yes. Her strength rivals that of a full grown man. And, just a little secret between us—"_

_His voice grew smaller until it was nothing more than a whisper._

_"It is believed that she is a descendant from the noble family of Scarlet, the fearsome vampires."_

xxxxx

**298 years ago, a city in France—**

My name was Remilia Scarlet, the heiress of the noble vampire of Scarlet. Or should I say I was, until that night; the night when I killed all the other vampires.

I wasn't simply running myself in a fit of rage; I had every single reason to tear them with my bare claws and fangs for all those years they spent tormenting my poor little sister. That night, though, also signaled for my own fall, and what's more, I brought my sister with me to that deepest pit I fell into. That, to speak the truth, was the only thing I regretted from the moment I realized this nightmare was nowhere near its end.

As I indulged myself in my own memoirs, as sharp pain erupted from my back; the pain I had known too well in the past two years I spent in this foreign land.

"Hey you, stop idling around!"

The slave driver raised his whip one more time and I scurried back to my patch of field, sending secret glare at him. Yes, I was a slave now. From a proud noble vampire to a life own by a filthy human; that was how low I had fallen. I worked in the plantation from dawn until dusk, ignoring how the sun still secretly burned my pale skin despite my vampiric powers that gradually fading with time. In fact, I had almost forgot how life as a vampire was, prior to that fateful night, when the only thing I had to worry about was a scolding from my tutor for daydreaming about running down the street. Those days felt more like a delusion I made myself rather than a true long gone memories.

Life wasn't always about the sun kissing my back and a whip lashed over my hardly recovering wounds, though. In fact, it wasn't this bad at first, when I worked at the laundry due to the color of my skin, and being one of the master's 'favorable collections'. One day though, something utterly unexpected happened; Flan, with no apparent reason, clutched on a white overseer throat that was smiling smugly at her, choking him to death. We were sent to the plantation since, unable to see one another for day to end.

But what troubled me the most wasn't this cruel daily routine I had learned to endure, but how Flandre's face twisted into a sickening smile as she put an end to that man's life; how it sent a chill down my fragile figure and shaken my very being.

xxxxx

_I woke up in alarm, to the sound of footsteps that slowly grew closer. Looking on the figure in my arms, I saw my little sister sleeping soundly with her wounds slowly recovering, her burn marks could still be seen. Wincing from the pain that suddenly shot all across my body, I tried to shake her awake._

_"Flan. Flandre, wake up. We have to move. Someone is coming."_

_She opened her eyes groggily, blinking a few times. I took that time to fully observe her conditions, noting that her wings were nowhere to be seen, which seemed to be the same case as mine. She seemed disoriented as she gaze blankly at me, and I blinked back at her._

_"What is wrong, Flan?"_

_"…who are you?"_

_That three simple words felt like a spear lunged over my heart. I swallowed, trying to find my voice amidst my shock._

_"It is me, Remilia. Remilia Scarlet. Your older sister."_

_"…Remi?"_

_My breath caught in my throat as I heard her saying my name instead of calling me with the usual honorific, but nodded nonetheless. She paused for a while before opening her mouth again._

_"So, who am I?"_

xxxxx

The sun had long set in the horizon as I retreated back to the cold damp cell under the mansion where my master lived. It was ironic, I thought, how I used to live up there when our human slaves, namely our foods, used to live down here. Most slaves lived in separated shacks away from the mansion, but I and the rest of his favorites, lived under his home. It was easy to distinguish us from common slaves; we all secretly had our own 'uniqueness', and bore the same black leathery collar around our neck with a metal plating that shown our names.

REM. Those were the three alphabet carved on my collar, which I found like it was ripped out of my real name with no real meaning whatsoever. Flan herself had the word 'FLN' carved on hers; a strange name that I swore they called her 'Flynn' instead since they didn't have any idea how to pronounce the latter. The life of us favorites were nothing better than common slaves, if not any worse, for us usually received hateful stares from others, while we worked in the most dangerous and dirty parts. Some that were lucky enough served as the house slaves, tending to the master's family; Flan and I were once included in that circle, but not anymore.

I slumped to the cold ground as the slave driver shoved me roughly to my room, locking the metal door behind me. I raised my head, searching for my sister that had supposedly returned as well; my gaze fell on a beaten up figure curled on the far corner of the room.

"Flandre!"

I quickly rushed to her side, holding her close to me.

"Flan, what happened?"

My ears caught a small giggle from her, before it turned into a full insane laughter. My eyes widened in horror.

"Hey, hey, Remi. Didn't you see how it wriggle? You know, like a pathetic worm? It's funny, isn't it? Ha ha, you should've seen that eyes! That lowly piece of—"

Slap!

I hit her. Without any thinking, without any warning; I just hit her, and now I stared at my own right hand in horror. She held her red cheek, staring at me with her own perplexed face. I stammered, slowly backing away.

"Flan, I… I'm sorry, I… I didn't…"

Suddenly, she embraced me and buried her face on the wretched fabric of my clothes, sobbing, muttering 'sorry' over and over. I couldn't help myself and brought her closer, stroking her hair gently to calm her.

"I don't know what came over me, Remi… Everything just went black, and…"

"Shush, it's alright. I know you didn't mean it, Flan. It's alright."

She nodded slowly. Our tranquil moment was stopped short as a loud clank was heard coming from the steel door of our room. Then emerged the figure I knew so well from it; I brought Flandre behind me.

"Shut yer bickering!"

I closed my eyes as he raised his whip, ready to endure all the blows.

_one, two_

"You stinking little—

_three, four, five_

"—don't cha know I need my sleep—

_six, seven_

"—ungrateful bunch of—"

By the time he left the room I had lost count. The only sound that lulled me to the dreamless abyss of darkness was the voice of Flandre slowly calling my name.

xxxxx

I was in the same field, working myself to the bone, my back still throbbing from the last torture I had the other night. I bit my lip as I bent my back, enduring the pain that erupted every time I brought up my hoe to dig on the hard ground. I held into my consciousness that seemed to be ready to slip any time.

"Oi, Rem!"

Was someone calling my name? I tried to focus my eyes to the direction of the voice.

"Come here right now, little runt!"

Growling low under my breath, I left my post and approached that slave driver I learned to hate the most. Only by the time I was a few feet away from him that I realized another figure beside him; a young girl, about the age of 8 or so, with cold blue eyes and silver hair. Her icy orbs fell upon me and I gave back my piercing red ones to her.

"She's all yours, now."

She broke our eye contact and turned around, tossing a gold coin to the slave driver whose eyes glittered in ravish greed. I blinked at her behavior, but my confusion was cut short as that-man-I-hate-the-most shoved me with his whip.

"Move yer butt already!"

I gave him one final glare before following the little girl, away from the plantation, toward the huge mansion that stood proudly in the middle of the bustling town.

* * *

**Well, hello everyone. Long time no see! *salute*  
**

**So here is the new arc for you (betyoudidn'tknowit'llturnthisway). Anyway, I think you may notice an appearance from another future SDM residents. *cough* pad-chie *knifed*  
**

**Anyway, enjoy the story everyone. And if you're kind enough, leave a review to let me know what you think.**

**See you in the next chapter~!**


	10. Separation and Meeting

It was a strange day. One night I was beaten to near death, then on the morning a girl came and took me away from my bone wrecking routine on the field. One would believed they had been saved by an angel. But I knew better. Because if anyone had ever got a chance to bust me away from this wretched place, for everything I had ever done, I knew, they could only be a devil. That, or an incredibly foolish human.

Nevertheless, I took the time from our little venture to get a better look at her; white skin, combed hair, clean appearance, proper clothes, and what was that? Ah, the same black collar as mine. So she was one of those lucky house slaves. I quickened my pace to walk beside her and took a peek at the leathery fabric on her neck.

"ETR."

She got into a quick halt and stare at me, with what, a glare?

"_So you still have some emotion in you?"_

A smirk unconsciously formed on my lip and I took a few steps back, a mischievous look on my eyes. For what seemed like forever I finally felt that little vampiric impulse I had left, the Remilia Scarlet I've been once, flickered inside me. I licked my lip, hardly holding back my snicker.

"A house servant, aren't you? Or maybe, you are one of that man's _toys_—"

A sudden force washed away my little speech, sending me stumbling to the ground as I felt the air knocked out of me.

"_How did she—?"_

I coughed, gasping for air, while my eyes still fixed on the small figure of a girl in front of me. Her cold gaze greeted me in return.

"I thought you have learned to swallow your pride and behave yourself by now."

"Heh, I'd rather die…"

I could swear she froze for a second, before she regained her composure and turned her back on me.

"I think _she _said the same thing."

The simple statement drained my previous confidence, rendering me speechless as I watched her with widened eyes.

"What was her name again? _FLN_, was it?"

In a moment of impulse I shot to my feet and grabbed her collar, bringing her to my eye level. I growled.

"You! What did you do to my sister—"

"Nothing."

I stopped mid-sentence, trying to process her word.

"I did nothing; I _couldn't _do anything to her."

"Wha, what do you mean?"

My grip on her loosened for a while, before I regained myself and tightening it. I brought her closer to my face. She could've seen my eyes clearly now, blazing with fury.

"Where is she? What happened to her!"

Heavy silence lingered around us, before she closed her eyes and sighed.

"Master had been fed up by her troublesome behaviors, so he sent her away to the New World to work on the mines."

"...sent her away...to the New World?"

I froze, once again caught in the middle of my own thought; the little girl took the chance to break free of my grip, edging away to a safe distance from my grasp.

"If I remember correctly, the ship should be departing today."

Right at that moment I ran as fast as I can, not even looking back to check if she, or even anyone, had ran after me. I might get punished again after this but I couldn't care less. The only thing in my mind now was to reach the dock the fastest way my legs could bring me.

The time the smell of the sea washed all over me brought my strength back, and I sped up even more. I halted only slightly each time to check on any sign of my sister on any ship I found. Though it sounded stupid and unreasonable, my hopeless attempt seemed to come into fruition.

There she was, on a big old wrenched ship, with all the other slaves, heading for the New World. I gathered my voice and shouted.

"Flan!"

She didn't seem to notice me yet, so I shouted louder, running all the while.

"Flandre!"

I reached the end of the deck, almost running over it and plunk myself into the sea, and fell to my knees, catching my breath. Taking a deep breath, I shouted on the top of my lung.

"Flandre Scarlet!"

I saw her flinched, and she finally turned, searching for my voice. I raised to my feet, taking another long breath.

"Flandre! Flan, wait for me, Flandre! I promise I will get you back! So don't you dare dying on me!"

She stared at me and blinked, before giving that innocent smile that always made my heart melt; I felt my own smile formed at that mere sight. I watched silently as the ship sailed away, before disappearing on the horizon, leaving nothing but the sound of the waves and my last memories of her.

"Have you finished your parting?"

My smile faltered in a second as I recognized the now all to familiar voice. I turned to face the silver-haired girl; her face as emotionless as ever.

"Let's go. Master doesn't like waiting too much."

xxxxx

A portly man, my 'master', sat on his chair in the middle of the well-decorated room, polishing one of his many furniture. As he took note of us, by my little companion's addressing our presence, his face swelled into what I assumed as a smile. I secretly took a quick breath in disgust at how his vulgar eyes studied my figure closely before his smile started to turn into a wicked one.

"My, my. It's been a long time, my little REM."

I nodded, trying hard to cast away my pride. I felt like tearing this man right this instant, but it was impossible for now. So I put up a smile, the best fake smile I have.

"Now, I think you are ready to return as my 'house-keeper', hm?"

I nodded yet again, trying to look as grateful as I could.

"Very well. Teach her all she need, Eterna. Oh, and clean her up first. I don't want my house to be reek of mud."

"Yes, master."

Eterna, the little girl from before, bowed, and I followed her gesture.

"We also need a new name for you; a more…'civilized' name."

"_You were the one who gave me this name."_

I thought to myself, holding myself from rolling my eyes. After a while he snapped his fingers.

"Roanne. From now on your name is Roanne, understand?"

I nodded in the stupidest way as possible; well, if he knew his 'lowly little slave' could speak French and some other languages he couldn't even name, I bet he would be far from delighted.

"Wonderful. Now run along and get ready for your new work."

I bowed once again and retreated out of the room, Eterna following suit after me. The door creaked, slowly coming into a shut, showing its owner's smile one last moment; a smile that I learned to hate from then and on.

xxxxx

"This is your room."

I stepped inside my new place to sleep and sat on the worn out bed. Well, at least there was still a bed; I spent the last two years sleeping on the cold ground of the cell so this was more than enough. It had been a long time since I had a decent piece of clothing, too. And a decent bedroom. A decent bath. A decent—ah well, a decent everything. But little Eterna decided to disturb my current reminiscence; she stared at me, crossing her arms, tapping her foot impatiently on the floor. I turned my head at her.

"Let start your lesson then, Roanne—"

"Remilia."

She looked at me with widened eyes, and I kept myself from snickering; I always enjoyed how her blank expression finally showed some colors.

"My name is Remilia; Remilia Scarlet."

"...nobody cares."

She whispered mostly to herself, but I decided to press the matter further.

"Well, I care. He can give me as many names as he want, but I won't forget who I really am."

The little girl took a step back, clearly startled by my statement by now. Time to go even further.

"And guess what? I will someday leave this wretched place and attain my—"

One second I was running my mouth smoothly, then she clamped her hand over my mouth, silencing me. Glancing here and there, the girl suddenly broke into a run, dragging me over an arm. I didn't even have time to protest; without I realized we had finally reached the town, merging with the busy street. Had it always been this fast, reaching the town?

She let go of my arm as we reached an empty alleyway, turning to face me once again. The disturbed look on her face brought my confidence back. She stared at me for a while before shaking her head. My smile stretched.

"Is something the matter?"

"No. It's impossible."

"What is?"

She paused, mumbling to herself. I decided to finish for her.

"To escape this slavery you have born with?"

The little girl tensed, but refused to face me yet. I tried a different approach.

"Say, won't we work together from now on? I have tell you my name, so it is only proper for you tell me your name in return. Your real name that is..."

"...Eterna."

How stubborn of her. I tried to play my words more, but she stopped me before I even started.

"I'm Eterna the house slave, Zeit the thief, Tanja the bounty hunter, Blanca the errand girl, and some other names that I couldn't even remember anymore..."

She ended it with a whisper, and as she finished, I laughed. I laughed, I really laughed, at how pathetic this little girl was despite her previous stern attitude. There's something interesting about her, so much that I wanted to stick my nose into. Well, this could become a little entertainment after a long while. And while I'm at it, maybe I could regain my forgotten instinct? The very idea overwhelmed me.

"Hey little girl..."

I whispered sweetly to her ear.

"_Have you ever heard about vampires?" _

* * *

**Welcome back, everyone. Here I present to you chapter 9, fresh from the word processor!  
**

**Yeah, so Flan got sent far far away. But! Remi seems to have something up her sleeves. Something involving our gonna be pa-*knifed***

**Anyway, enjoy the story everyone. Thanks a lot for all the reviews you gave, it really boost me up. *thumbs up***

**See you in the next chapter~**


	11. Devil's Contract

I walked down the busy street, slowly, eyes wandering around as I searched for my target. There they are! I gulped and approached them quietly, hugging my long coat closer. Suddenly a band of thieves got out of their hiding, circling a pitiful yet wealthy man. I bit my lip, hesitating.

"_You've done this more than once; there's no reason to be scared!"_

I tried to reassure myself, closing my eyes.

_3…_

_2…_

_1…_

_Stop!_

I shouted loudly to myself, opening my eyes on the same time. And they did as I said; everything did.

The world froze before me.

xxxxx

"_Have you ever heard about vampires?"_

_I yelped, feeling the cold air she blew on my ear; I jumped a safe distance away from her right away, feeling a slight shiver down my spine. I stared at her carefully, suddenly feeling all alert; she simply returned to her full height, that smile didn't leave her face even once. I thought she was nothing more than a stupid fallen noble or something, but now I knew, surely, there was something different from her. Something inhumanly different._

"_Have you?"_

_I narrowed my eyes. Why did she suddenly bring up that topic? I relaxed a bit, but still keeping my guard high. Taking a breath to calm myself, I tried to put back my poker face._

"_That folklore about demons that suck human blood?"_

_She laughed, again. What's her problem? Maybe she was another cuckoo like her sister? The more reason I have to keep away from her. Despite my inner turmoil, I kept my emotionless face. As she finished her fit of laughter, she looked at me again._

"_I see, I see. We are nothing more but folklore now…"_

_She tried to stifle another laugh. I crossed my arms, starting to feel annoyed by her. Was she simply toying with me? Maybe I was wrong to think she really meant it about escaping this place. Yeah, I should quickly return to the mansion and punish her later. She seemed to notice the annoyed look I wore despite how hard I tried to mask it._

"_Ah well, you see, I am a vampire."_

_That's it. She really was a cuckoo._

xxxxx

"Well, if it isn't Zeit. Haven't seen you for a long while, lad."

I gave a quick hum of approval, tossing my stolen goods to the counter. In truth I didn't like the idea of stealing too much, though I only 'steal' from thieves' stolen goods_, _but there were no easier way to earn cash given my current status and position. And I needed to start making some, saving it for the grand plan my somehow-turned-out-to-be-vampire fellow made.

I realized that the pawnshop owner had been staring at me for a while now, instead at my goods. I narrowed my eyes.

"What?"

"Nuffin. Ya don't rob things for yer owner anymore, do ya?"

"How do you—"

I quickly clamped my mouth shut before causing any ruckus. After calming down, I whispered quietly.

"What are you talking about?"

"can see it in yer eyes, lad. That fire's burnin now."

Nonsense. I huffed and turned, resting my back on the counter.

"Just give me my share, Mr. Blake."

"Aye, aye."

xxxxx

_I sighed, mentally slapping myself for bringing this cuckoo and starting to get my hope high for nothing. Putting another stern face, I started to walk away, but as I passed beside her, she grabbed on my wrist, stopping me. I glanced at her, keeping my poker face in check._

"_I take it that you don't believe in me?"_

"_...I don't have time for fairytale."_

_She whined, putting her other hand on her hip as she think, letting her vision wandered to the already darkening sky. She returned her gaze to me and I stared back blankly._

"_This timing is good enough."_

"_...what timing?"_

_She edged closer._

"_**Give me your blood."**_

_Her statement successfully startled me now. I froze, staring into her unusually red pupils, and started to feel an unknown fear crept up; that time, I couldn't keep my cool anymore. I thrashed badly, trying to release myself from her grasp. It was no use; I was clearly overpowered by her._

"_No need to be so scared; I am a light-eater."_

"_Ack!"_

_I felt a sharp pain on my arm; I instinctively pulled my hand away, the one she had gratefully released. Pulling myself away from her, I saw her staring at my blood on the knife she held; my knife. I should've left it before bringing her here! I thought loudly as I saw her licked my blood, and as she squirmed in what seemed like a pain._

_Her body writhed and twisted as she held her head, her muted scream filled the quiet alleyway, and I stared on in horror. Then something bursted out of her back; something that I couldn't believe to be possible._

"_...wings..."_

_I muttered in awe as I saw the pair of bat-like wings flapped, as if finally tasting its long lost freedom. I heard her whispered, loud enough for only both of us to hear._

"_Welcome to the 'fairytale', little girl."_

_I was rendered speechless for I didn't know how long, watching her figure under the gentle glow of the moon, struck in a dream-like state before the sight. Even though I knew that vampires were demons, creatures that fed from humans; namely my kind, I couldn't help but being captivated by her form. But my little peace of moment was over as soon as I saw her bent her body in pain once more._

_I rushed to her side, keeping her steady as I watched her wings shrunk back, leaving only a strange glowing red mark on her back; an unknown sign that quickly disappeared as soon as it came._

"_Tch, that damned old geezer..."_

"_...are you okay?"_

_She pushed me away, staggering to stand on her own feet for a while, before putting her hand on her hip again, giving me a toothy grin._

"_It's your turn then, little girl."_

"_...my turn?"_

"_Yes. Tell me more about you. And about that strange power you have..."_

xxxxx

I silently snuck back behind the mansion, bringing the little pouch of money I got from my last catch, eyes carefully observing my surrounding for any sign of life. Surprisingly, I failed to notice a certain figure perching on a nearby tree.

"Welcome back."

"Waaah—umph!"

The vampire, Remilia, hung up-side down on a tree, startling me and almost made my heart jumped to my throat, but successfully sending me tumbling on my butt. Good thing I could stop myself before alerting anyone; if we were found out we could got punished for gathering without our master's permission. She jumped down the branch she was perching on and helped me up; I tried to hide my blush from my stupid outburst, but she didn't seem to even notice it. We walked further into the forest, walking after many identical trees to find a huge boulder blocking our path. Remilia halted and kneeled beside it, then she lifted the boulder effortlessly, showing our little safe; I was still amazed at how strong she was, and wondered what else could she do if only her power wasn't sealed.

I dug the ground a bit, revealing a box we used to save our deposit. Lawfully, all of slaves properties belonged to their master, so we had to hide this carefully. Don't look at me; I wasn't the one who suggested this put-them-on-a-box-under-a-boulder-where-nobody-but-me-can-lift-it method. I put the money I currently had inside and observed the rest of the contents. It wasn't much for now, but it would be. At least, maybe, we could execute this silly plan of hers before I got too old to walk and see the world with my own feet.

xxxxx

"_We will earn money and buy our freedoms."_

_That's it? I stared dumbfoundedly at her triumphant delaration. Maybe I wasn't wrong about her being a cuckoo._

"_What with that face?"_

"_...I thought you will suggest something more...'bloody', with your vampire stuff and all."_

_She thought to herself for a while._

"_I don't think so. I can assure you that this spell put on me is not an easy one to break. We can think about breaking it after we get back our freedom."_

_I knew nothing of this hocus-pocus, so I guess I should believe in her. Finally I nodded, and she laughed again, a little less mockingly this time._

"_So here is the plan:_

_'First we will gather some money to buy your precious pocket-watch he hold; I will need your blood again to shape-shift for a while and do the exchange with him. By then, I will tell him that I have heard about his slaves and is interested to buy three of them; they are you, my sister, and me. Nobody wanted to buy Flan before, so I suspect he will be delighted when he hears someone want to pay for her. The problem is, I believe he will put some high prices for us._

_'So we have to save a great amount of money, starting for now. Using your skill, you can easily do some little thievery, right? And you said you are already familiar with it. I will cover your works on the house; my physical strength can handle more than you humans."_

_'so, what do you say?"_

_I tilted my head, trying to process the whole thing she said, but finally decided to give up and simply nodded. One thing I knew for sure was I have to gather money; lot and lots of them._

xxxxx

I stared blankly at the ceiling, trying to lull myself to sleep after failing at doing a counting sheeps. I tossed to my side, only to be met by my room-mate's sleeping face. I blinked, staring at how innocent she looked when she slept. But it seemed that I was tricked.

"Can't sleep?"

She opened her eyes, staring back at me with her red eyes; I quickly switched my gaze away in embarassment.

"Same as you."

I puffed my cheek childishly as I heard her chuckled.

"Vampires are normally nocturnal, little girl."

"Humph, stop calling me 'little girl'; we don't have that much of an age gap. And I _have _a name."

"Oh? How old are you?"

"Eight."

"Well, I am over 200 years. So, about your name... How should I call you?"

She completely put away the age gap matters, the one that give me another dumbstruck moment; I should start to learn how to adapt to her pace of doing things. I sighed.

"Just call me Eterna."

"I don't want to."

"...why?"

"You call me with my real name, so it is only fair if I do the same."

I thought for a while. A real name? What is my real name? Do I even have one? I didn't remember at all. Then something popped up from my memories.

"Sakuya."

"Sakuya?"

"Sakuya. Yeah, Sakuya. Call me Sakuya."

"What a strange name. Is that even a name?"

"Well..."

I fumbled with my hair a little, thinking whether I should tell her about it or not.

"I was told by Mr. Blake at the pawnshop, about a little writing I found on his shop. It was written on a language I didn't know. It was read as 'Sakuya'. It means 'flowering night'."

"Flowering night, huh. What a fitting name for the one working with the queen of the night."

I giggled softly to myself and my new name, feeling warm all of a sudden.

"So, Sakuya. When I have my power back and rebuild my mansion, would you become my familiar?"

"What's a familiar?"

"Let just say... my most trusted and obedient servant."

"I refuse."

"Eh?"

She rose to a sitting position, pouting, clearly disappointed by my decision. I smiled.

"I don't want to be a slave anymore. But, if you hire me as your maid, I will accept it."

"Hm..."

The vampire mused to herself for a while before retreating back to her bed, pulling her blanket over her again.

"Fine, I'll take you as my maid. No, my chief-maid."

"Deal."

I pulled my own blanket closer.

"Fufufu... You just make a deal with the devil; don't even think about running away or breaking it."

"Hm, hm..."

I started to feel sleepiness invited me and I yawned, giving her one last glance before closing my eyes, before being drawn into my first happy dream ever.

"Good night, _milady Remilia_."

* * *

**Hello and nice to see you again, everyone. That's some quick update. *staring at the release time* Ah well, I was having too much time with my old laptop that could only be used to type. **

**...what a 'brilliant' idea, Remi. Let's see how long your little plan would last... *thinking out some twisted plots* **

**And! This chapter was dedicated to our perfect and elegant maid gonna be. *ducking for no apparent reason* No knife this chapter? *jumps* Whoa yeah!**

**Anyway, just ignore my rambling and enjoy the story everyone.**

**See you in the next chapter~ **


	12. Little light under the earth

"_I am shocked to find that M. Poncet has started to invest in such an ugly servant like you. Don't you know? That burn marks severed my appetite!"_

_The blonde little girl tilted her head, watching the man spat before smiling smugly at her. She watched, she simply watched, until he approached the other girl in the room._

"_At least he still keep another one to make up with…"_

_He grabbed her chin roughly, tilting her face, observing her every details; her pale white skin, her smooth lavender hair, and her striking red eyes. And the blonde little girl froze. Her eyes darkened, she approached the man slowly._

"_Hm, such beauty—Where did he find you, I wonder?"_

_She seized him, only succeeded on grabbing his coat since she was so small compared to the tall portly man, though in one mighty swing, she sent the man to the other side of the kitchen. Then she approached him again; she was far from finished with him. _

"_Why you little—gack!"_

_The little girl squeezed on the man's neck, effortlessly, like how she dried the laundry a few hours before. She stared deeply at him, with her own striking red eyes, watching as he struggled for air, until his body went still._

_Then she laughed. She laughed louder, and louder, and louder, until she drowned in her own laughter of unknown satisfaction._

_The door swung open, revealing another man, with a perplexed face that soon turned into rage. The little girl was shoved roughly to the kitchen table, one arm pinned to the wooden surface; the arm she used to end a life just recently._

"_Insolent brat!"_

_She saw a butcher knife._

_Slice._

_And then there was red all over. _

xxxxx

**296 years ago, the New World—**

It was dark. It was always dark down here in the mines. But somehow it didn't feel so unfamiliar. As if it had always been like this, way before I came here. Maybe it was. Since, actually, I couldn't remember anything about my past; about my childhood or my mother or my father, about my kind big sister who I loved the most.

I shook my head and then heaved my hammer with only one hand, continuing my work. It was hard but I couldn't complain, since I lost my other one on an 'accident' I couldn't clearly remember. No. I did remember what happened, just a little bit.

I was punished.

Because I killed someone.

"_Why?"_

Because I was angry.

I was so angry, so I killed them.

"_Do you really think so?"_

What are you talking about?

"_That wasn't the reason."_

"…"

"_Why?"_

"_**Because it's fun~"**_

I clutched my throbbing head and fell to my knees, letting my hammer hit the hard ground in a loud clank.

Throb, throb, throb.

I doubled over, feeling the headache growing worse. I could hear everyone started to circle around me, watching me with their own each unique expression to wear. And then I felt my smile stretched.

"_**Squeeze and break them~"**_

"Hey lad, are you okay?"

Then, everything went black.

xxxxx

_Drip_

The sound of something dripping.

_Drip, drip, drip_

It sounded close. I opened my eyes, watching the same dark scenery I saw every day. Soon enough the familiar sound of stone clicking and clanking entered my ear, but the dripping noise didn't stop.

_Drip, drip, drip_

What is it? I tried to sit, but quickly regretted it as my headache returned. Still, I was stubborn enough to put it away. I turned my head slowly to the source of the voice, trying not to make my headache worse.

It was a water source.

And an old man was sitting near it, facing it.

Then he turned around, revealing his wrinkled face to me. I blinked as I saw him smiled at me. Was there something amusing on my half-burned face? He moved closer and handed me a metal container, with water in it. I switched to stare at it.

"Are you getting better? Do you understand what I'm saying?"

I nodded, mumbling a quiet thanks. The headache had gone for now, and I gulped down the water, washing my dry throat. When did the last time I drink? I almost forgot.

The old man chuckled and sat beside me, petting my head. I gave him another odd look, while he kept his soft smile.

"My name's Jacob."

I kept silent. Oh, I should tell him my name as well.

"Flan. Flandre Scarlet."

"Flan, huh? What a cute name for a little girl like you."

"Is it?"

"Uh-huh."

I felt strangely calm now. Then I smiled.

"He he, my sister gave me my name."

"You have a sister?"

"Yes, but she didn't come with me."

"She isn't a slave, huh?"

I paused. A slave? Yes, a slave. I was a slave. And so was my sister.

"She is, but she isn't here."

"I see…"

The atmosphere grew quiet as we sat there, silently watching the dim-lighted wall of the mine. After a while, Mr. Jacob spoke again.

"I have a granddaughter, about the same age as you when I last see her."

"Oh…"

"It's been eight years since I last saw her. She must have grown until a beautiful lady now."

He closed his eyes, still smiling.

"The only thing I can do is pray for her safety. And try to survive, long enough so we can meet each other again."

"…can you really meet each other again?"

I squeezed on the metallic scrap on my hand, switching my gaze down to the rocky ground.

"…Remi said…that she will come and get me someday…"

Silence. I grasped it harder.

"I mean, it's not like I don't trust her! It's just—"

"Flan, calm down."

I paused, staring at Mr. Jacob with wide eyes as he put his hands on my shoulders, calming me down. Feeling the cold metal on my hand, I switched my gaze to it, only to find it horribly crumpled on my palm like a mere sheet of paper; I stared on my own handiwork in horror and tossed it away, edging away from the old man.

"…I'm a monster…"

"What are you talking about, lad?"

I smiled, though I didn't know why.

"I killed someone. I was punished. And because of me, Remi was punished too. I wanted to help her, but…"

I started to giggle, clawing on my messy hair.

"_**I destroyed everything."**_

"…"

"What am I? They called me a cuckoo; Flynn, the insane. Ha ha, why is it? Everything around me always end up broken."

"…"

"Don't you get it, gramps? If you get closer, you'll die. Why? Because I'll kill you. I don't why, I don't know how. But I'll surely kill—"

"Hush."

He patted me again, giving me that same warm smile; the one I had only received from Remi before.

"Aren't you one lonely girl? It's okay, see? I'm still alive, am I not?"

I started to shiver. And then I hugged him, crying on his old ragged clothes, clinging like a little child I was to her grandfather.

"I'm scared… I'm scared of myself… I'm scared that everything around me will disappear… I'm scared that I won't be able to see Remi again…"

I cried. I cried loudly, for I don't know how long. On and on, until I felt my tears dried up.

xxxxx

After that little meeting, my days in the mine continued. But the same dark ceiling didn't feel as suffocating as before. I met a lot of people; kind people, bad people. Old people, young people. There were so many of us here working in the mines, each which our own tales and suffering. But we lived together. Helping each other out, looking after one another. It was just like—

"…just like a family."

"_Are you an idiot?"_

I quickly pouted, my previous joy drained. There she was, that bad voice that kept echoing in my head. I ignored her and continued my work, hitting the rock with my worn-out hammer.

"_Humans are foods, and toys if they're strong enough; nothing more than that."_

"Remi said it's not good to speak badly of other people."

"_You're vampires; why care for humans? Anyway, I'm bored. Why don't we snap some necks of those slave-drivers?"_

I shook my head and ignored her yet again. Oh yeah, meet Flynn. She always said bad things but don't mind her; she couldn't do anything but talk. And don't worry, I hated her as well. So much that I wanted her to get out of my head as soon as possible.

"_I'm you, and you're me. You can't deny me."_

"Then you can't deny me, too."

Huh? Was it really that strange to speak to yourself? Well, I never told anyone about our little conversation; everyone but grandpa Jacob. Speaking of which, he was calling for me. I heaved my hammer to my shoulder, running toward him. He welcomed me with a hug.

"Ho ho ho, how is my sweet little granddaughter today?"

"Great! Ah, but listen! Flynn bothered me again."

"_Did not."_

"Did, too."

I stuck my tongue, and grandpa Jacob patted me.

"Oh well, remind me to scold her later. Now come, Danyse had prepared our lunch."

"Mom had? Yay!"

I followed beside him, skipping along the rocky path with my bare feet. As we reached the exit, I blinked a few times to adjust my eyes. I loved the open air, but I didn't like the sun too much. It always burned my skin and made me feel light-headed, but I had learned how to ignore it. I walked eagerly to the little hut all of us shared, sitting beside grandpa as I waited the food being distributed. The tasted of the gruel always felt better after several days of eating almost nothing down in the dark mine.

Smiling widely, gulped it down my throat.

xxxxx

_Hey, Remi, how are you?_

_I am fine here. Though the work are harsh and the slave-drivers are such meanie, I am fine. Because I have found a lot of kind people; grandpa Jacob and mommy Danyse and everyone else. If only you are here to join our little family, I'll be happier than ever._

_I hope we can meet each other again soon. I've been a good girl, so don't worry anymore, okay?_

_Until then._

* * *

**That simple letter of a child never reached anywhere but her heart, forever recorded in her memories...  
**

**Or something like that. *laughs***

**Hello again, everyone. Yup, here's another chapter from Flan's perspective. It's harder to write since I need to make it as childish and simple as possible, with a little hint of madness here and there. I wonder if the feelings are fully delivered in this writing. I just hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**So, you know the cue. Enjoy the story everyone!**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	13. Countdown to the Party

_"Knock, knock, knock!"_

_The sound of a distant knocking was softly heard_

_from the rusty old door of the long forgotten land…_

xxxxx

**290 years ago—**

**:. Day -13**

**04:00 am, France**

The sky was still dark when a small figure of a girl silently crept under the dim-lit forest. Slowly, as not to make any noise, she pushed the boulder blocking her path, one that was about five time of her size, revealing a soft ground that seemed to have been dug over and over. Sweeping away the dirt, she pulled out a wooden box. A treasure chest; inside was a fair amount of coins and gold. A cheshire smile stretched on her face.

"It's time~"

xxxxx

**05:30 am, the New World**

A little blonde girl was running bare-footed along the rocky road, dragging her hammer that seemed to be too big for her, leaving the dark opening of a mine toward the broken line of green lush. In front of her was quickly seen a hut, a broken down one, and she tossed her hammer away, leaving it on the door as she rushed inside.

"Grandpa! Grandpa, are you alright?"

"Oh, isn't it little Flan visiting me?"

The little girl calmed down, watching her 'grandpa' weakly lying on a bed, and she clutched her worn-out clothing for a sort of comfort. She had heard him suddenly collapsed, more and more frequent lately, and it was strange she thought, how she saw her 'grandpa' grown weaker day after day, his hair turning whiter, and his face shown even more wrinkles. It was strange, she thought, how the little girl who was once smaller than her had grown to be bigger and taller than her.

Why, she thought, did everyone change but her?

The small thought last only for a second as a white overseer suddenly barged in, roughly shoving away the girl, and dragging the weak old man away from his bed.

"Get back to work!"

xxxxx

**10:00 am, France**

"It is but an old pocket watch, but if you really say so…"

"I'll take this if you please, and those three that I have mentioned before."

"Very much obliged, monsieur. I will have them ready in a matter of week or so."

"Good day."

"And to you, too."

The black coated man exited the manor in a bit of a haste, holding his hat tightly as he zigzagged the crowded street and slipped into an empty alley. Waiting before him was a young woman, with silver hair and blue eyes, appearing out of the thin air, supporting his writhing body. And he shrunk. Yes, shrinking he was, until he was nothing more but a size of a child.

"How was it?"

The little girl, previously a man, returned to her own feet; the smile on her face was filled with confidence despite her seemingly tired face.

"Why of course, everything went as I planned."

She proudly declared her success, and lifted her face to see the seemingly older girl. Ah yes, eight years were a long period of time for humans, and so the little girl she used to drag around had outgrown her now. But for the vampire, nothing had changed. She turned and walked away as she usually did, dismissing the trivial matter to the back of her mind.

"Let's return before making any unnecessary commotion, Sakuya."

"Understood, milady Remilia."

xxxxx

**09:55 pm, the New World**

The sound of clanking metals was nothing unusual around the mine. But a certain little girl was anxious; her hammer hit the stone in a broken pattern, creating a ripple between the harmonious sound echoing within the hollow tunnel. She was worried, about her 'grandpa' and herself, about the possibility of the unknown future that was yet to come.

"_We are vampires. Mere humans like them will disappear long before us."_

Her hammer stroke the stone in a huge impact, shattering it to pieces, and the little girl paused, frozen in thought. She was scared. She was very very scared. If he and the other disappeared, what would become of her then?

"Flan! Flan, you there?"

The voice broke her out of her trance and she turned to face the voice, eyes still searching for hope.

"The overseer is calling for you."

xxxxx

**11:00 pm, France**

"They'll be ready in a week or so, he said."

"I see…"

The lavender haired girl chuckled, watching her room mate repairing the old pocket watch she seemed to adore so much. Kicking her legs as she sat on her mattress, her mind wandered even further away, dreaming of a certain blonde girl she missed dearly in the past eight years. About a week or two; such duration was nothing more like a blink of eye in her time. Though doubt kept gnawing in her deepest consciousness, she couldn't help but being overwhelmed by joy, like a little girl eagerly waiting for her long-awaited present. Glancing out the window, she whispered softly to herself.

"It would be a full moon by then, huh? It's going to be a fun night."

xxxxx

"_Who's there?"_

_The voice behind the locked door didn't answer_

_yet the sound of the knocking grew louder and louder_

_like a wild animal clawing on its cage, waiting to be free…_

xxxxx

** :. Day -9**

**02:00 am, Atlantic Ocean**

A lone ship swayed above the deep blue sea. Guided by the wind, its magnificent sail pushed the giant structure, slowly, but surely, toward its destination. The rough current of the night sent the ship into a restless shake, but the silent cargo of cottons and rums wouldn't protest, safe for a little cargo in the deepest part of the deck. The little girl in shackles, hidden behind the stack of boxes, hugged her knees as she tried to sleep. Closing her eyes, she tried to call on a happy dream, of her 'grandpa' and her 'family' left behind in the mines, of her dearly missed big sister that would be waiting for her in the end of the hellish trip.

xxxxx

"_It's been a long time, isn't it?"_

_The sweet alluring voice beyond the door said in a sing-song voice_

"_Now now, why don't we start the countdown?_

'_For our barely remembered party filled with lunacy'_

'_is ready to begin once more…"_

xxxxx

** :. Day -1**

**12:00 pm, France**

"I'll be leaving on an errand."

The red eyed girl said casually as she filled her bag with supplies and documents, eyes didn't even glance to her silver-haired companion.

"Tomorrow."

"Hm?"

"I heard the cargo will arrive tomorrow."

The little girl halted from her previous work to finally glance at her companion, obtaining an uncertain look from her. She sighed, secretly beaming with joy, but keeping her cool still. Abruptly, she approached the girl and patted her, giving her a grin.

"Wonderful! Now wait obediently for my return, understand?"

The seemingly older girl flinched at the sudden and unusual action she received, staring blankly as the little girl left and closed the the door behind her.

And she smiled.

xxxxx

_The dead clock started ticking again._

"_Are you ready? Tick, tack, tick, tack; Let's start the countdown!"_

xxxxx

**290 years ago, a city in France**

** :. Day 0**

**- 24:00:00 until the party began**

* * *

**Whoa, whoa, whoa... I don't know why but I feel restless myself writing this. I can't wait to find where my imagination will take this story~! *typing like crazy***

**Hello again, and again, and again everyone. Well what do we have here? DUN DUN DUN! The climax of the current arc is getting near. Finally after eight years, Flan and Remi will meet once again. And what will become of our gonna be chief maid? Fu fu fu... *****snickers* **  


**Enjoy the story and cliffhanger everyone! Fasten you seat belt for the ride will start soon!**

**See you in the next chapter~!**


	14. Death Waltz - Prelude

_A little girl who was cursed from her birth_

_A little girl who put a curse on herself_

_When their fate intersect with each other,_

_what kind waltz would they dance tonight?_

xxxxx

A lone merchant cart silently crept down a road, carrying goods ready to be sold along the trade route. And sitting on the back of the cart was a little girl, yawning, eyes half-lidded as she tried to keep herself awake in the middle of the calm breezy day.

The little girl stretched and turned, rubbing her tired eyes from her long trip. She was given an errand by her master; one that normally took days, one that she decided to finish in a mere 24 hours. Concerning her decision, which took her running non-stop and hitching rides for uncountable time due to the silly deadline she made herself, it was normal to fall asleep by now, but her overjoyed mind rejected the idea in an instant.

"Wake up…"

She pinched her own cheek, encouraging herself; it was proven to be futile, as another yawn and the cargo of soft cottons behind her sang a perfect lullaby, lulling her to sleep.

xxxxx

It had been a long time since the little girl saw a city, and when she arrived at the busy dock, she couldn't help but stare in awe with her eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. So many person in one place with so many colors and languages; though it wasn't much different back at the mine, the lively and merry atmosphere made her gulped nervously and lowered her face. Well, even if she didn't do it she would be forced to anyway, since a lowly slave with such hideous half-burnt face would ruin their sight. Or so she was told.

Flandre stepped out of the cargo ship she was on, dragged by a chain tied to her collar, she murmured nothing in particular to herself as she walked.

"_Are you scared of the crowd?"_

She blinked as she registered her other self, Flynn as how she called her, spoke in a mocking manner, and she pouted, whispering back to herself.

"No, I am just…nervous."

"_Scared?"_

"Nervous! Because, um… I'll finally meet Remi again after a long time—Wah!"

Her brief inner conflict distracted her and she tripped over, stumbling down onto the ground with her face first, her one arm was unable to stop her fall; she rolled to her side and whimpered in pain. The man who was dragging her growled as he saw it, and pulled her chain yet again despite her current situation.

"Stop yer daydreaming! Master need you to be cleaned fast!"

She struggled hard to balance herself and returned to her feet as he dragged her without even looking back at all, tripping herself some more on the way while trying to keep her whine to herself.

Deep inside she was eager though, and happy, though nervous still, as she could finally saw her sister once again. She kept her promise, and her sister did the same. And she had been a good girl. She hadn't hurt or kill anyone, and she had kept 'Flynn' in check. Remi would be so proud of her!

"_What's that about keeping me in check? I'm not your enemy."_

"…you always told me to do something bad."

"_I didn't. I simply repeat what I heard from 'beyond the door' so you won't be shocked when it finally escape. With such immense raw power sealed, it's not impossible for it to break free at any time and drawn you into madness."_

"Liar."

"_I'm not."_

"Yes, you are. I'm already a cuckoo; they always called me that way. See? You're the proof."

"…_you don't understand. I'm talking about a far more dangerous state of mind. It surpasses your thirst of blood and instinct as a vampire—"_

Flandre huffed and ignored the 'little voice' completely; it's not like she really understand all the things she said in the first place. As she half-listened to Flynn, she finally spotted her destination; a huge mansion on the edge of the town, the one she once working at with Remi, before she was punished and sent away. She could still remember the cold dark cell, and the warmth of her sister as they hugged each other close before falling asleep. It was a happy memory, wasn't it? She wasn't sure. But she did feel happy. So maybe it was.

The little girl stopped on her track as she saw someone blocking the way; a girl who seemed to be in her teen, with gentle blue eyes and a soothing smile. She saw her previous 'escort' handed the chain to the girl and left, leaving her in the unfamiliar figure's care.

Flandre took a glance at the girl. The air around her felt…different; she thought to herself as she followed her new 'escort' obediently, staring at her all the while.

"Tell me…"

A whisper. Flandre blinked and shook her head, trying to register the voice. It wasn't Flynn. So who was it? She glanced to her side and found no one.

"…are you Flandre Scarlet?"

It came from in front of her; she switched her gaze to the said direction, only to meet a pair of mesmerizing blue orbs. She took a step back in alert.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you."

The silver-haired girl approached her slowly, like one would to a scared animal, and crouched to her height, fumbling with the lock binding the chain to her collar, taking a moment to observe the little girl's face as she did.

"I guess the two of you really are sisters; you look just like her."

"... you know my sister?"

The lock clicked, leaving the chain free to hit the floor in a clank. Flandre stood still as she saw the girl rose gracefully to her full height, her smile never left her face.

"There's a lot of things I need to tell you; about your sister, and about everything that will happen after this. Would you come with me?"

Flandre quickly nodded, a determined look on her face; the other girl chuckled as she saw her childish side. It was hard to believe that this innocent looking girl was the same one she met eight years ago; the one that was sent away for a murder. The girl sighed.

"Very well. But first, let's clean you up. This way, miss Flandre."

xxxxx

Remilia stirred and turned on her sleep, hugging herself tighter into a ball. Something wet dripped on her face and she whined, pushing whatever it was disturbing her peaceful moment. But it didn't back down that easily, so the vampire eventually gave up and opened her eyes, trying to register the figure in front of her face.

It was a dog.

A big slobbery dog lapping on her face like she was some kind of its lovely chewing toy.

And she screamed.

"Whoa, there. Is everything alright?"

"No! I mean, yes! Yes, everything is fine."

She reached for a nearest cloth and wiped her face, sending a sharp glare at the dog; the little beast seemed to understand its position and backed away in fear. Disturbance gone, she raised her head to look at her surrounding. The sky was already dark, with the moon hiding itself behind the clouds and, huh? That's weird. She didn't remember having crossed this road on her way before.

"Excuse me."

She called merchant who quickly turned his face to her.

"Where exactly are we now?"

"Let's see… We're only a few kilometers away from the last stop of the trade route—"

"The last stop? We've long passed the crossroad to the port town!"

She jumped down the cart and quickly grabbed her bag, didn't even bother to check on the document she supposed to bring, and quickly rushed off.

_This is great, Remilia. The plan you've perfectly made for years will come to waste because you overslept!_

She didn't even remember how long she spent cursing as she ran; all she had in her mind was to run as fast as her legs could bring her, to where her little sister was waiting for her.

xxxxx

This was the first time Flandre had ever remembered seeing such colorful room, with many strange furniture displayed on many different shelves and a lot of pictures and paintings hanged on the wall; she tried hard to keep her hand from touching and breaking any of them. Fortunately, or unfortunately, her master entered soon enough before her curiosity won over herself, and she quickly hid her hand behind her back.

"Well, well... Flynn the cuckoo, the little murderer is back!"

She cringed a bit as he raised his voice. He didn't seem happy to see her from the look of his face.

"I'm quite _disappointed_ to see you alive. But guess what? Someone has decided to buy you! I don't understand why he need an ugly useless handicapped slave but, oh well, I got you as an extra for Roanne anyway so this shall give me a great profit."

Flandre stared at him all the while as he retreated to his comfy chair, checking some documents piled on his desk. The little girl blinked.

"...a slave has to be useful? They are simply properties?"

Was it a statement or a question? The man behind his desk was more surprised to find how she could speak a real language at all.

"So you can speak French? I should've put a higher price on you, what a pity."

The girl narrowed her eyes as she didn't get her answer.

"…grandpa was sick, so he couldn't work. But the meanie overseer dragged him from his bed. Because he was a slave he had to work?"

The man slammed his paper works to his desk and finally turned his attention to the girl.

"I am not obliged or even care to hear your pitiful story, little girl. I bought my slaves to work, and that is what they need to do. And when they don't—"

He rose from his chair and approached her, whispering darkly in front of her face.

"—they will have a fitting punishment."

The little girl clenched her fist, feeling her anger building.

_"Please stay out of trouble and wait patiently until milady Remilia returns."_

Flandre tried to suppress herself before anything bad happened, because every time she let go, she always ended up with a corpse or two. She had to wait for her sister. The portly man mistaken her to be shaken though, and he smirked, continuing his lecture.

"Alas, you should be grateful by your own condition. Unwanted soul like you—"

"—_**nobody ever wanted you—"**_

Flandre flinched as she heard another voice echoed in her head; a voice that seemed to come from a different time, one that she had never remembered hearing before, but had at the same time, and she clenched her fist harder.

"—who can do nothing but destroying everything—"

"—_**you took everything from me, yes?"**_

Who was it? Her headache returned and she whimpered slightly in pain.

"—to have your live spared until now while you should've been executed… Well, I think simply putting you into a peaceful slumber wouldn't be enough regarding everything you've done."

"—_**killing you wouldn't be enough—strip you out of your—power—weak— torture you to death— amazing?"**_

She fell to her knees and clutched her head in horror. And the little girl screamed, an inhumanly soul wrecking scream, as images after images rushed into her head.

_A vampire—the noble vampires of Scarlet—the dirty little secret was born—abomination—hidden in the basement—_

_onee-sama?—father?—where?—dead—dead, dead, dead—_

_**the eyes—**_

_the eyes everywhere—clench—red—blood—why?—kill the monster—kill—kill kill kill ki—_

Her scream grew louder and louder, until it turned into a laugh. Her insane laugh echoed within the room. She bent her head backward, her smile stretched from ear to ear.

"Cursed cuckoo—what is wrong with you!"

The man covered his ears as he watched the whole scene. The laugh finally reduced into a small giggle as the little girl shifted her body forward, her head lolling to her side.

"Little birdie?"

She looked at the man with a crazed eyes, her red pupils bore through him like a predator eyeing its prey, and she stepped closer.

Step.

"Stay away…"

Step, step. The man backed away and reached for a drawer on his desk.

"It's an order; don't come any closer!"

Step, step, step. He pulled out a gun and pointing it at her direction.

"_**Stay away from me!"**_

Gunshot; the ear-piercing sound was heard over and over as bullet after bullets lunged itself into her body. The little girl didn't seem to be disturbed even a bit, despite the blood that kept oozing out of her severed flesh and wounds, she kept on walking slowly, spewing blood all over and tinting the room red as she did. The last bullet hit her left eye and she stopped.

"It hurts…"

The man tossed away his empty gun and backed away even further until a wall stopped his track, his face turned pale as the little girl drawn closer.

"Hey, why did you hurt me so?"

He gritted his teeth, his eyes darted around the room to look for any possible escape.

"It hurts—"

"Eterna!"

The now pitiful and scared man shouted on the top of his lungs. A voice was heard from behind his door and a smile tugged on his face slightly.

"Is everything alright, master? I thought I heard—"

"Eterna, get rid of this cuckoo right now!"

His confidence returned to him bit by bit and he snickered, returning from his cowering position to his full height.

But the door didn't budge. His smile faltered and he shouted again in anger.

"What are you doing, Eterna! Hurry!"

"Master, would you please unlock it first? **The door is locked.**"

He froze, the simple sentence rendered him speechless. He didn't even realize the little girl that had closed in on him, grabbing on his neck with her one hand, smiling wildly.

"_Bye, bye, little birdie~"_

xxxxx

_On the night of the scarlet moon, a devil was born_

_from a curse carried by an innocent girl_

_The dead rose to celebrate its birth_

_and the living returned to the earth_

_Thus, the death waltz began  
_

* * *

**Here is another chapter, everyone! **

**Now, where the heck are you when you're needed Remilia?**

**Remi: Stop complaining, I'm on my way! *still running***

**Dozing slowpoke. *ahem* Anyway, while we wait for her, enjoy the story everyone.  
**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	15. Death Waltz - Finale

_The devil dances to the death waltz alone_

_like a crippled little bird with one disjoint wing_

_She waits for her other half to come_

_to join her twisted party filled with lunacy  
_

xxxxx

I halted from my continuous running as a sharp pain erupted from my back, almost tripping myself from the momentum of the sudden stop. Oh, come on, I was in a dire hurry! I tried to drag my numb body, ignoring the pain.

"I don't have time for—ack!"

The pain on my back grew worse and I fell to one knee, holding my aching joints.

I knew this pain; it was the same one I felt every time I drank blood in my current state. But why now? What triggered it? As if my instinct called me, I raised my face to meet the moon, the scarlet moon that finally decided to reveal itself. Its red glow was reflected perfectly in my matching red eyes; I was caught in an unknown trance.

Not long after that my joints creaked, and I screamed in pain. My wings grew, my fangs elongated, my whole body felt as if it was broken down and reconstructed from scratch; the pain was truly unbearable. After what felt like eternal torture it finally dissipated, and I fell to the ground, my breath hitching to match my racing heart.

What happened? I managed to raise my hand to observe my sharp claws, and I stared at them in awe as if it was the first time I saw them.

"…the seal…it was broken?"

Then something hit me. If it was broken, then…

"Flandre."

The realization brought back me back to my feet. I tried to adapt to my new anatomy, which was harder than I expected. After a while of struggling to find the right balance between my wings, I dashed as fast as I can in a speed that I didn't even consider before.

I narrowed my eyes, still slightly surprised by how they can see clearly to match my current speed. Only after a while that I dare to fully spread my wings and took flight, gaining even more speed. The feel of the air entering my lungs refreshed my memories of my previous days as a full-fledged vampire, and I regained my confidence. Soon enough I reached my destination and descended slowly to the ground.

But the field was empty, and the mansion was lack of life. Even though it was on the edge of the town, it wasn't supposed to be this quiet around this time. Something was not right. I walked cautiously down the empty street, eyes trying to catch any movement in the dim-lighted path.

"Hello?"

I spotted a movement from afar and quickly approached it.

"Hey, could you tell me—"

"Ah?"

I halted abruptly, staring eye to eye with the creature in front of me. A dead body that shouldn't have moved, stood there right in front of me, some of its limbs were out of place. I covered my nose as the rotten smell of its flesh started to fill the air.

"_Remilia, there is one thing you need to remember when you feed from a living human.'_

'_We Scarlets have a unique power flowing within us; a power so great that it invites a lot of problem if not used wisely. One of it affects our way of feeding.'_

'T_hose who we feed from will neither die nor live. They will turn into a ghoul; a living corpse that will walk the earth for a while before evaporating into the air. In their short moment, if they happen to bite another human, they will turn them into another ghoul. That is why, when we feed from a living human, we should properly kill them before they turn into one. It is our way to stop them from suffering further. Do you understand, Remilia?"_

I understood, father. I understood every bit of it, but still, I ignored all the living corpses around me, and didn't even bother to help any human I came to bump into. I had to search for Flandre; that was the only thing I had in mind for now.

"…milady."

My feet quickly stopped as a weak voice entered my ear, rendering my whole body frozen. It couldn't be. It took a lot of inner conflict until I dare to turn my head toward the direction of the voice, and right then, my time stop. An image from one of my worst nightmares was shoved blatantly in front of me.

"Sakuya?"

She was there, lying weakly on the ground, blood slowly seeping out numerous stab wounds that I couldn't even fully make out. My emotion won over my previous reason and I ran to her side, staring at her fallen figure with wide eyes, still refusing to accept the fact.

"Sakuya! What—"

"…please calm down, milady."

She softly put her finger over my lip to silence me, and I complied, clenching my fangs.

"…will you listen…to my wish?"

I nodded, and she gave me a weak smile.

**"Kill me."**

The simple statement hit me stronger than anything, and I was clearly shaking by now. I swallowed, trying to find my voice.

"W-what are you talking about?"

Silence.

"You will be fine—everything will be fine. I will fetch Flandre right away, then we all can—"

"I've been bitten."

I froze again for I didn't know how many times, staring at her dull blue eyes once again.

"I've seen how they…transformed into those monsters…And I feel like it won't be long until my time come as well…"

No. Please don't.

"…all this time I've never been acknowledged as human beings…a property, a monster, a slave…but at least, I want to die human."

Don't say it—

"…so please, milady Remilia. Please kill me before I turn into those monsters..."

"Stop saying nonsense!"

I shouted loudly, ignoring everything.

"You'll work in my mansion as my chief maid. You've made a contract with me! A devil's contract! Nobody—"

My breath was caught in my throat.

"..nobody should be able to break it. It's supposed to be absolute."

My voice was nothing but whisper by then, and I held back my tears. I wouldn't cry ever again; I'd made a vow long time ago, back when mother had left. But her weak hand softly caressing my face gave it away, and I lowered my face, away from her sight, my tears flowed.

"…I'm sorry…"

I hated flowing water, moreover tears. I hated them more than the sun. They burnt my skin, and crunched my heart at the same time.

"Unforgivable."

I blurted out like a pathetic little child. Brushing away my tears, I returned to stare intensely at her before snatching away her precious pocket watch; I held it up in front of her face.

"I will confiscate this pocket watch! So if you ever want it back, you have to come and work at my mansion as the contract said. Do you understand, Sakuya?"

I saw her stared at me for a while before managing a weak laugh.

"…understood, milady…I'll be coming back soon…"

"Good."

I returned to my full height and shakily raised my claws, closing my eyes.

"…until then.."

xxxxx

It took me some time until I find Flandre, as I decided to trace the whole mansion off the ghouls. Her lost arm had regenerated along with her burn marks, and she was sitting on the desk in the collection room, juggling with the previous owner's head, back against me as I heard her sang happily.

"_Circle, circle around you~ The bird in the cage_

_When will you come out?_

_In the night before the dawn_

_The turtle and the crane slipped_

_Who is it behind you now?"_

And she turned, a smile on her face. She beamed in joy as she spotted me standing at the door.

"It's Onee-sama!"

She tossed the head away and jumped down the table, running toward me; I kept my stern face. Instead of welcoming her with a hug, I shouted at her in anger.

"Flandre, what have you done!"

She stopped dead on her track, staring at me in horror.

"Didn't Sakuya tell you to wait for me? To stay out of trouble until I arrive? But this—"

I took a deep breath to compose myself.

"This…just, what have you done?"

"…I'm sorry."

Hearing her apologizing helped a bit, and I felt my anger started to subdue bit by bit. But before I could continue to say anything, a great force sent me flying to the faraway wall. As my vision cleared I found Flandre in front of me, staring at me, a crazed smile on her face. A chill crept up my spine.

"Flandre, you…"

"I'm sorry, Onee-sama, I'm sorry. But I couldn't help it…"

**'I really want to tear you apart right now~"**

This is bad. I gathered my own strength to dodge before her claws reached me, bringing up my fist to hit the side of her head. She wavered a bit, her head lolling to her side as she was temporarily paralyzed by my blow. I took the chance to talk to her again.

"Snap out of it, Flan! What is wrong with you?"

"Kyu~"

I was too late to realize what happened, too late to remember her ability of destruction, and I could barely held my scream as my right arm was blown away by a mere clench of her fist. I held my bleeding limb, cursing my own recklessness, and step some more distance away as she lunged herself at me once again. Granted that I was faster than her, but only faster, so the only thing I could do was dodging her claws, and hoped that she was too preoccupied to use her destructive ability. She giggled.

"Onee-sama, onee-sama, it's been a long time! Let's play together again, okay? Just like the old time back in the basement!"

"Flandre... you have remembered everything?"

"Of course~!"

My wish reached a deaf ear; she clenched her hand again and this time my leg was cleanly blown off. Laughing louder, she grabbed my hair and threw me against a wall once again, pinning me on my neck right after. I coughed and stared blankly at her matching scarlet eyes, trying to regenerate my lost limbs to no avail.

"You know onee-sama…"

Her laughter died out and her voice reduced into a whisper.

"I think I know why I was locked in the basement in the first place."

She chuckled a bit before continuing.

**"Because I really am a monster."**

I clenched my fangs, giving her a pathetic glare.

"That's not true, Flandre. You didn't do anything wrong, they made you—"

"I love you, Onee-sama."

Huh? I tried to registered what she was saying once again.

"I love you so much, **so much that I want to kill you and tear you apart.**"

I didn't have time to comprehend her twisted logic as her grip on my neck tightened.

"You see? Something is wrong with me. Is this what they called insanity? Madness? Ha ha, I don't understand, Onee-sama…"

She paused, her voice grew even quieter this time.

"…I don't know what to do…I don't want to hurt anybody, but my hands move on their own…What is wrong? What is right? Left? Right? Up? Down? Happy? Sad? I don't understand anymore…"

She started to choke me by now, her sharp claws dug into my skin. Her face grew closer until I could feel her breath, and saw the tears that freely fell down her face despite her smile.

"Onee-sama, can you kill me? Please? Kill me **before I kill you.**"

My anger bubbled up once more and I grasped her hands hard; her grip on my neck didn't falter, just as I thought, she was far stronger than me. But I had never intended to win against her in term of raw power; I tried to gather my magic, in a way I somehow remembered.

_Destiny: Miserable Fate_

Soon enough a chain made of pure energy materialized itself, binding Flandre on place, her both arms on her side and away from my neck. I took a moment to catch my breath.

"This won't be enough to stop me, Onee-sama. If you want to—"

"I'm fed up with it."

She tilted her head innocently, and I sighed.

"First Sakuya, and now you? I am not the local executioner, but every one of you keep saying things like 'kill me, or else—' I'm really fed up with it!"

"But, Onee-sama—"

"No buts!"

I approached her again slowly, walking, even though my broken leg hurt like hell every time I took a step; I tried to ignore the pain as it started to regenerate slowly. Raising my good hand, I flicked her forehead to scold her, and she pouted.

"Now be a good girl and go to sleep. I promise I will find us a place where you won't be a monster; where everyone will accept you as you are. And this time, please Flan, do patiently wait for my return, okay?"

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"...okay then."

I smiled as she finally calmed down, and proceeded to hug her.

"Good night."

"Good night, Onee-sama."

_Scarlet Sign: Red the Nightless Castle_

xxxxx

"Aah! Get away!"

I stared down in mild interest as I saw yet another human being cornered by a group of ghouls, visibly shaking in fear. Well, this was a mess my little sister caused, so it was only given for me to clean it up. I raised my hand.

_Divine Spear: Spear the Gungnir_

My spear pierced the ghouls, evaporating them into thin air. The pitiful human I 'accidentally' saved looked up at my figure that was perching on a roof, giving me a look of horror. I snickered, showing my fangs to him.

"…aah…a devil…"

Hm?

"It's here… **The Scarlet Devil**, the devil tainted in deep red…"

Scarlet Devil? What was he blabbering about? Then again, I seemed to like the sound of that name. I leaped down the roof, edging closer to the human who back away even further in a renewed fear. I whispered menacingly at him.

"Yes, it is I; the Scarlet Devil. So heed my words, human. If you want your life to be spared, run and tell your kind of my presence. Fear me. And never forget that feeling, ever..."

I enjoyed the fear reflected in his eyes and chuckled to myself.

"Now leave. Before I change my mind."

I tried hard to stifle my laugh as he scampered off into the dark night. There was no guarantee that he would survive, but if he did, things might turn interesting. As I was enjoying my moment another group of ghouls appeared; I sighed and summoned my spear again.

"Time to get back to work."

xxxxx

_The two devils dances together under the scarlet moon_

_weaving fantasy in their own fabricated world_

_The Scarlet Devil and The Sister of the Devil_

_In the dead of the night, their mesmerizing tale starts_

* * *

**_And... that's it folks! This is the end of the current arc, when the sisters finally acquired their mansion and Remi gained her title as the Scarlet Devil. But our story are still far from its end.  
_**

**_Next there'll be another short intermezzo, then... brace yourself for the whole new arc!  
_**

**__****_Oh yeah this chapter, and I could even say the whole arc, were inspired by the PV of "Priere" by Sound Holic. _****__****_Another wonderful work that you gotta love to see. _**And that song that Flandre sang; does anyone find it familiar? You betcha! It's a song from a Japanese children game called "Kagome Kagome", which is also the name of one of her spell cards. And about the Ghoul thingy, I kinda took the reference from PMiSS. I made up some details here and there though... *laugh* 

**_Enjoy the story everyone. And review if you may, I'd really love to hear what you all think of this story._**

**_See you in the next chapter~_**


	16. --Afternoon Tea--

**SECOND ARC: SLUMBER**

**END**

_Grumble, grumble._

_"Uurgh, I'm starve…"_

_Sigh._

_Close._

_Glance, glance._

_"Hmm… But if I leave now, I'll be caught. Now what to do?"_

_Grumble, grumble._

_Sigh._

_"If only foods can appear out of the thin air—"_

_THUD!_

_"Huh?"_

_Turn._

_"What is this? Oh, there's a letter."_

_Open._

_'Enjoy the meal.'_

_"Enjoy…the meal? Could this be?"_

_Lift._

_"Wow! Cookies and tea! Oops."_

_…._

_…._

_Crunch, crunch._

_Gulp._

_"Yummy."_

_Sneak, sneak._

_"Okay."_

_Open._

_"I'm ready now."_

**THIRD ARC: AWAKENING **

**BEGIN**


	17. A Traveler from a far away East

"—_the great plague; the town was off-limit since. But that's not true."_

_The old man shivered._

"_I saw it myself. It wasn't a disease, it was a demon."_

_He swallowed hard, his voice came out hoarse and dry, deeply coated in fear._

"_**The Scarlet Devil."**_

xxxxx

**240 years ago, somewhere in France—**

"Now this is something."

I whistled as I observed the tall structure in front of me, hands on my hip as I studied the thick stone wall. I did hear the town was quarantined, but I didn't expect them to fully isolated it with fortified walls. Rather than a quarantine, it was more like a cage, as if a horrible beast was being shut inside. I shivered slightly. Should I just turn back I wonder? I shook my head, looking for some footing on the wall. I was quite proud with my physical ability downed by my countless years of studying martial arts; soon enough I reached the top of the wall, gazing down on a ruin of what used to be a glorious port town. I stared at the scenery in awe.

"Looks like I just get myself into something big."

I gulped and leaped carefully down the stone wall, continuing my way deeper to the heart of the town. I —Huh? Who am I?

My name was Hong Meiling; just a lone traveler from a far away east. What was I doing there? To be honest, there wasn't any special reason or anything. I was simply a traveler; I traveled here and there, never to stay. And when there was something interesting happened, I stayed for a while before continuing my journey once again. Why did I leave my land in the first place? Now, now, this is getting personal. Let's just focus on the matter on hand.

I walked cautiously, almost tip-toeing, along the dirt path which I assumed to be once the main road of the town. The town was dead silence, safe for the sound of the blowing wind and the cry of a group of crows; I halted to take a brief look at them. Their number seemed to have increased as time ticked by and they observed me with what seemed like hungry eyes; I cringed and tried to push the matter aside, continuing my way.

There was something strange; I noticed it as I walked around the empty town. In theory, if the citizens were wiped out by a plague or a certain disease, there should be cemeteries scattered around, or at least, corpses on the ground. But I found none. There was no trace at all, as if the whole citizens simply vanished and evaporated into the thin air.

As if the whole town had been eaten dry by the devil.

xxxxx

_It was on one of that night when I couldn't sleep that I decided to take a short walk around the town; a habit I started to develop over my years of traveling. While most people who just arrived on a foreign land, while having no single ideas about their language or cultures, tend to be reserved to themselves, I tend to do the opposite, watching locals and alike doing their activities. I could even proudly declared that I had already understood their language. Well, mostly. Okay, maybe some._

…

_Fine, at least I could understand what they were talking about, one way or another. Anyways, when I reached a certain corner I found a group of people, seemed to be homeless, gathered around a campfire._

"—_not plague—devil!—after—she'll get us next!"_

_Devil? I edged closer as my ear caught the simple statement, trying to get a better hearing._

"—_port town—south from here—don't ever enter—die—"_

_Hmm… There was a devil in a port town further south from this town? Don't ever enter that town or you won't come back alive? My guess seemed to be correct as I studied the fear in his eyes as he continued his story. I was drowned by his expression, feeling the tension despite the only little bit of words I understood. And the last warning he said lit a strange spark in me._

"—_The Scarlet Devil."_

xxxxx

I sat on the remnants of a fountain, taking a breather from my little exploration. Just as I thought I couldn't find any trace of a body or anything, which meant my guess was correct; it wasn't a plague, it was something else.

Maybe it really was the devil. Maybe she was still here somewhere, stalking me, waiting for me to let my guard down. I tensed at the possibility, darting my eyes around me to find any sign of danger; there was nothing but the crows. I sighed in relief.

But really, what mystery had I gotten myself into? I stood, absentmindedly walking around the town with no specific destination. If it really was the Scarlet Devil, then…

"Caw! Caw!"

"Whoa! Wait, wait! Cut it out!"

I jumped at the sudden cry, shielding myself with my arms as a crow started attacking me. Had I walked too close to one of their nest? I rushed a safe distance away and glanced back toward its direction. But what I found wasn't a bird nest, but an abandoned mansion stood on the edge of the town. I saw how the crows gathered on the trees along the path heading to the mansion, gazing at me. Were they guarding something in there? My previous theory was rejected in an instant I saw that, actually, none of them had made their way past the mansion's gate, let alone making their nest there.

The crows must have scared of whatever it was in the broken-down mansion. And they tried to warn me and keep me out as well. And right then, somehow I knew.

I had found the devil's lair.

xxxxx

"…_so noisy."_

_A little girl rose from her bed and yawned, rubbing her eyes a bit. She gave an annoyed look before glancing out the window from her dark bedroom. Hm? Something was unusual. She blinked as she noticed someone else beside the crows, stifling a laugh as she saw that someone scampered off when the crows attacked them. A glint of mischief was lit on her eyes, driving away her previous sleepiness._

"_It seems like I have a guest."_

xxxxx

"Ouchie… Geez, that was harsh…"

I pouted at the crows, holding my arm that was full of scratches.

"If you want to warn me, can't you guys at least do it in a more gentle way?"

They simply answered me with their croaking cry. I sighed. At least they couldn't harm me anymore since I already passed the mansion gate, but still, even more horror would probably awaited me inside. I took a deep breath, fixing the grip on my bag, before proceeding further. The mansion's front door fell as I pushed on it, and I quickly held up my hands in defense.

"I'm sorry! I pushed it very gently, I swear!"

The only answer I got was my own voice echoed throughout the wide empty hall. After I recovered from my previous outburst, I brought myself inside, walking ever so slowly and carefully as my eyes observed my surrounding. I let my legs guided me, keeping my guard higher in every passing minutes. After I didn't remember how long I finally reached a dead end; a spacious room with a single throne in its end. I stared at the empty seat, as if trying to make sure that it really was empty. I sighed, letting my fists to drop to my side.

But suddenly, as I let my guard down just a bit, I heard a voice; a laughing voice of a little girl, echoed from somewhere in the room. I tensed.

"…hello?"

My voice bounced back to me. I gulped as I started to fell a chill down my spine.

"…i-is someone there? I'm sorry for trespassing, so—"

_SLAM _

I quickly twirled my body toward the source of the voice, entering my previous battle stance and bringing up my fists. The only thing that greeted me was a closed door, but that itself was strange.

I swore I had knocked down that door before.

"_Welcome—"_

Another voice was heard and once again I turned toward it, my fists still up and ready. And soon, I paled, as if the blood had drown out of my face.

"—_to the Scarlet Devil Mansion."_

Sitting on the once empty throne was a little girl that seemed to be nothing more than ten, gazing down on me with her mesmerizing scarlet eyes. But what truly rendered me frozen wasn't her sudden appearance, but the huge pair of jet black wings sprouting from her back, and her red tainted dress that seemed to have given witness of her might.

"…the Scarlet Devil…"

I felt so feeble right there and then before her sharp yet calm gaze, caught between the moment, unable to move forward or turn my tail and run. I simply stood there, frozen, trying to keep myself from shivering in fear. She seemed to notice my uneasiness as I saw her smile stretched.

"Who might you be? And what bring you here, I wonder?"

"I-I… I just, um…"

"Hm?"

"…"

I returned to my full height from my previous stance, clasping my both hands and brought them in front of my chest, giving her a proper greeting.

"…my name is Hong Meiling, a traveler from a far away east."

I saw her blinked, as if trying to register my speech. Why of course! She couldn't have understand what I was saying. I closed my eyes as my mind tried to find a way out of this little, but might turn bigger, mess.

"I see…"

I felt a presence approaching in front of me and I reopened my eyes; my heart almost leaped out of my throat as I saw the devil standing, or to be exact, floating in front of me, staring right into my eyes.

"A Chinese traveler, aren't you?"

"…how do you.."

"I have hundreds of years to spent learning languages; I've learned most of them, even some that you couldn't even name."

She turned away from my face and started to circle me now, observing me. I gulped and stood rigid in place, eyes following her fluid movements.

"So, miss traveler from a far away east, what do you need from me, hm?"

"…no-nothing in particular. I just stumbled into your place—"

"A broken-down mansion on an off-limit town?"

"…well, that's… I overheard some locals talking so I was curious—"

"Really? Tell me, have you ever heard about 'curiosity kills the cat'?"

I took a quick breath as she ended the last sentence in a sing-song voice, and as she whispered it on my ears. _Run, Meiling! Run! _My instinct shouted loudly in my head, and without delay, my body complied; I brought up my elbow and hit her torso with all my might, running for the only door that was on the far end of the room. Soon enough I reached it and fumbled with the doorknob, pushing it, then pulling it, but the door didn't budge. I gritted my teeth and retreated my hands to each side of my hip, taking a deep breath.

I gathered my chi, the huge amount of energy flowing within me, focusing them on my right fist, then punched the door with everything I got; I quickly rushed toward it afterwards. But still, it didn't budge; I ran face first to the somehow very hard structure of wood. What was wrong with this door? Holding my stinging red face, I tried to get a better look at it. Only then that a realize the strange red circle glowing on its surface, and I gasped as I realized the pattern.

"A barrier?"

"Indeed."

_Oh, snap— _

In a moment of impulse, my fist shot out to hit her once again, but she didn't accept my blow gratuitously as she did before; she caught my fist, with no difficulties at all. I yelped as she squeezed it, forcing me to retreat to my knees; I looked up to her smaller figure in a pathetic look of defeat.

"Ah, I understand now."

She released her grip, sending my stumbling on my butt.

"That power… This smell…"

She chuckled.

_**"****You're not a human, are you?"**_

I froze, eyes wide as I stared at her forefinger pointing accusingly at me.

"Am I wrong?"

"W-what are you talking about? I'm... I'm just a simple and weak human... see?"

I stuttered, shakily showing my broken hand that she squeezed before, trying to show how pathetic I was. But the look on her eyes didn't falter.

"Did you commit a crime? Were you driven out of your land?"

"No! I—"

"So, you were accused for something you never did?"

I clamped my mouth shut, lowering my face shamefully to the ground. I heard her chuckling once again, walking away from me as I listened to her footsteps echoed throughout the wide hall.

"It is understandable; the society tend to be scared of the unknown and the wicked. Even though they didn't do anything, everyone would call them monster and find a way to get rid of them. Then again—"

She twirled, ceremoniously plopping herself back to the throne.

"That is your reason for looking for me, right?"

My reason? I felt like a being splashed by a bucket of cold water on the face, waking me up from my thought, and I brought my face back up to look at her, sitting there with her chin resting on the back of her hand. Why did I come here again? Why am I so curious about the incident? It was because… I was looking for her? But why? As if reading my mind, the Scarlet Devil smiled.

"**You thought that I am the same, just like you. **That is why you come here in the first place."

…that's right. That's why. I only wanted to find a peace of mind. I didn't care about the plague or the mystery about the vanishing citizens; right from the start, I was looking for her.

I was looking for someone of my kind.

**I was looking for the Scarlet Devil.**

As if a load was lifted off my shoulder, I let my body fell to the dusty floor, staring blankly at the ceiling. Slowly, I smiled. And I laughed; a wholehearted laugh that I hadn't felt like forever.

"Ha ha… Ha ha ha—ouch!"

"Hey, stop lying down on the floor. It is unsightly."

I rubbed the bump on my head where she kicked, proceeding to sit, and by then, somehow, as I looked at her annoyed face with her arms crossed over her chest, my previous fear was drained out of me, as if it didn't even exist in the first place.

Because that little girl and I were the same now. She was no longer the devil and I was no longer her prey; we were fellow 'monsters' now.

"Don't get too cocky."

"Eh?"

I stared dumbfoundedly as she walked away, retrieving my almost forgotten bag before tossing it to me; I caught it absentmindedly, eyes still staring at her.

"My name is Remilia Scarlet, the descendant of the proud and noble vampires of Scarlet. Remember my name well, because from now on, **you will be my servant.**"

Silence.

"_EEHH!?"_

Wha-what? When did it come to this? The shock overwhelmed me and I dropped my bag, my mouth kept opening and closing like a fish, unable to form any coherent words. She raised a brow at my silly behavior.

"Is there something wrong, miss used-to-be-traveler from a far away east?"

"W-wait a second! Your servant? But I—"

"You don't have any destination or any place to return to anymore, correct?"

"…that's true, but—"

"Then it's perfect! I will provide you with housing. There are a lot of works waiting for you, but for now, follow me."

She exclaimed proudly, walking toward the sealed door and putting her hand on the wooden surface; the red pattern on it vanished, and soon the door fell to the floor in a huge slam. I flinched a bit at the loud sound before grabbing my bag and tailing after her, whining.

"Um, you know, Remilia… being a servant is a bit…"

Suddenly she stopped; I almost ran into her, but thanks to my refined reflexes, my body stopped before making any impact. She turned her head toward me, and I gulped, taking a few steps back.

"Do you have any objection?"

"Uh, actually…"

"Perhaps you think you can defeat me and take over the mansion?"

"…"

"Well?"

I dropped my head in defeat, bowing low at her.

"No, master."

"Good. And call me 'mistress' or 'milady' instead, understood?"

I relaxed a bit as I saw her slowly walking away, sighing as I followed her once again. As we walked silently along the mansion long corridor, I took some time to observe the dark and broken hall way. This place must have been abandoned for years. But my little observation was disturbed as I realized that we had been going deeper and deeper underground, until the scenery around me turned pitch black. I squinted my eyes, trying to search for my new employer.

"Hey China, can you see in the dark?"

"Um, no?"

"Right, as I thought."

I heard a shuffling from somewhere and then the sound of fire flickering; soon enough I found the Scarlet Devil in front of me, holding a lantern on hand. She tossed the lantern to me.

"Here you go."

"Thanks…milady."

I heard her snickered for a while before we continued our way. After a long walk in the darkness, we finally reached a huge metal door blocking our way. I brought the lantern closer to the door, cringing a bit as I noticed scratches and blood stains on it. Suddenly, my long forgotten fear returned. I swallowed, turning my head to the vampire beside me.

"Um, milady? Where are we going?"

"Glad you ask. You better start memorizing your way through the basement since you have to come here quite often."

I have to? I took a step back, and she laughed at my cowering figure.

"I will introduce you to my sister; my sweet little sister, Flandre Scarlet."

* * *

**Hello and welcome back, everyone!  
**

**Here's the first chapter of the third arc. Hmm, a new resident right from the start... Remi sure works fast. Though I felt a little bad for Meiling, but oh well. One does not simply enter the house of the devil, and come back out in one piece. Literally.**

**Anyways, enjoy the story with its brand new plot and icing while it's still fresh! Review if you may, and...**

**See you in the next chapter~!**


	18. Nursery Rhyme

"_Humpty-dumpty sat on a wall,_

'_Humpty-dumpty had a great fall._

'_All the king's horses and all the king's men_

'_couldn't put humpty together again."_

…

…

"…_Aah, it's broken again."_

xxxxx

Knock, knock, knock.

"Flandre? Are you awake?"

Silence.

"I'm coming in."

He he, but nobody was there.

"…Flandre?"

"Boo."

"_Gyaaah!"_

The red-haired lady screamed and scrambled away, running to hide behind my sister, and I couldn't help giggling as I emerged from the shadow, eyes gleaming with curiosity and mischief.

"Tell me beforehand if we're playing hide-and-seek, Flan. And you; get off."

My sister crossed her arms in front of her chest, pushing the red-haired lady away with her wing; I eyed the two of them, hands behind my back, trying hard to hold myself from tackling my sister in excitement. I felt my smile stretched.

"I heard explosion so I came to check on you, Onee-sama, but you came down faster so I followed you back, and I thought maybe playing hide-and-seek would be fun! So I sneaked behind you ad—oh, oh, is it dinner time already?"

My mind was quickly distracted and I approached the red-haired lady who was still frozen there. Hm? What was she so scared of, I wonder? But my sister quickly took hold of my reaching claws and the bloodthirst I felt before disappeared in an instant; I tilted my head and gave her a questioning look.

"No, Flan. _This_ is not food. You can tell from her smell, right?"

"Hmm…"

I sniffed the air around her a bit and blinked in realization.

"She's not a human?"

"Indeed. And she will be working for us from now on."

"Working?"

My sister gave her a sharp look and she quickly returned to her full height, folding her hands in front of her chest. I blinked once, then twice, trying to listen carefully to her gibberish talk. Was this some kind of greeting? I finally mimicked the gesture and gave her a toothy grin. After a while of silence my sister sighed.

"You've never learned Chinese, Flan?"

"Chinese? What is that?"

"…I figured."

She left and walked toward the nearest table she found, gracefully plopping herself on it. Oh, it's announcement time! I quickly dragged my chair over and sat, listening carefully to her. The red-haired lady glanced at my sister, at me, then back at my sister before she decided to just sat on the floor, hugging her knees.

"Now listen up, Flan. _That_ is Meiling. She will be our servant, cleaning the house, making our meal, and so on. So if you ever need anything, just call her."

My eyes followed to where she was pointing to meet _that_ Meiling. It was the red-haired lady! Suddenly my excitement sparked up and I restlessly rocked back and forth on my chair.

"Oh, oh, can I play with her as well? Please?"

"As long as you don't break her."

"Yay!"

I threw my hands to the air and jumped to tackle Meiling; my mind as already busy searching for something for us to play together with.

"But!"

I turned my face to the source of the voice that was my sister, and proceeded to sit on top off Meiling who was already sprawling on the floor.

"I need her for now, so you can play with her some other time, okay?"

"Mmkay, then!"

"Good girl. Meiling, come here."

I stood and let her ran toward my sister; I once again giggled as I saw her being scolded by my sister in what might be called 'Chinese'. I waved at them one last time before the door to my room slide into a shut.

And I was back on my own, eagerly waiting for their return.

xxxxx

"_Um, milady? May I ask you a question?"_

"_It depends on what it is."_

…

…

"_The young mistress Flandre… Why is she, um, living down there?"_

"_Because she choose to."_

"…_I see. Sorry, I thought—"_

"_**The door is not locked.**__ I would never lock it."_

…

…

"_Now stop idling around and start learning some English. That is my first order."_

"_Err, yes, milady."_

xxxxx

I woke up into another loud crumbling sound, and I instantly shot into a sitting position, eyes wide awake. What is it this time? I didn't even have time to think properly as I found myself already running up the stair to the upper ground, ears searching for the source of the sound. Soon I reached the main hall, but I quickly skidded into stop to prevent myself from diving head first to the thick ray of the sun; the momentum sent me falling to the floor face first. I groaned and raised my face.

My sister and Meiling were there, both of them gave me a surprised look, and I pouted, puffing my cheek childishly.

"I was worried so I hurried here…again..."

"Ah, I see. You're such a silly child, Flan."

Big sister chuckled and patted my head, and I sat, giving her another pout. Sometimes I wanted her to stop treating me like a child; I was strong enough that I could protect her as well. Well, my little self-rambling was stopped short as my attention was distracted once again when I saw the big hole on the ceiling, and Meiling who was carrying some bricks. She seemed to finally realized that I had been staring at her and gave me her trademark greeting. I blinked.

"Good day, young mistress."

I inhaled in surprise and suddenly filled with newfound excitement, jumping to my feet before floating a bit in front of her, eyeing her with eyes sparkling with amazement.

"Meiling, you can talk!"

"Err, actually, I can. I always can. I just learned English."

"Hm, hm. Really? Say, say, can we play now?"

"Not now, Flan."

I switched my attention toward my sister, tilting my head.

"Why?"

"As you can see, Meiling is now repairing the mansion. You can play with her later, okay?"

"Aww…"

I descended back to the floor, my wings grew limp behind me. Big sister seemed to notice my disappointment and she sighed, a small smile forming on her face.

"But you are welcome to help with the repairment."

"Really? Yay!"

My excitement returned in an instant, as if it was always there, and this time I couldn't stop myself from tackling her, snuggling into her embrace that I knew too much; I smiled widely and giggled slightly. She patted my head in return, the same way she always did, and I smiled wider. After a while I shot back to my feet, fist brought up and eyes flaring with determination.

"Okay! What should I do first?"

"Young mistress? Can you pass me those bricks?"

Bricks? Huh, where might they be? I glanced to the far end of the hall and found some piles of them. Without hesitation I sprinted toward the heap of stony material and took hold of one, switching my gaze back to Meiling. Hmm… Bringing them one by one would take a lot of time. What to do, what to do… Oh, I know! I grabbed on the brick tightly and bent my occupied hand far back, aiming for Meiling.

"Ready, Meiling?"

"Ready—wait, what?"

Talking time's over; I threw the brick as hard as I could. It barely missed her and hit the wall behind her in a loud crash before crumbling to the ground along with the wall. I pouted and shook my fist at her.

"Why are you dodging it, Meiling? I'm trying hard aiming so you better catch them properly!"

"Wah, what!? No, young mistress, I'll die—"

"One more time!"

"Wait—Gyaaah!"

"There's still a lot more!"

"Young mistress, please wait—Uwaaah! Milady, please tell her to stop—_GYAAA!_"

xxxxx

_Remilia Scarlet stared dumbfoundedly at what used to be the main hall of the mansion, pinching her temple. She switched her attention to her sister and her helpless servant laying on the floor; she cleared her throat._

"_Flan?"_

"_Hm? What is it, Onee-sama?"_

"_Next time, just wait patiently until Meiling finish her job, okay? You can play with her afterwards."_

"_If you say so. I'm tired… Good night, Onee-sama."_

"_Good night, Flandre."_

_Her eyes followed her sister closely until she disappeared in the darkness of the corridor, before returning to inspect the wrecked room she was in._

"_This is quite a mess… But nothing impossible to repair, I guess."_

"…_a mess… This…is…a huge mess, milady!"_

_The chinese girl beside her raised to a sitting position, brushing the rubble away from herself._

"_Ahh… Now the repairment will take even longer…"_

"_Then you better start now. I want this hall back to what it used to be by tomorrow, understand?"_

"_Buh—but, milady that's impossible—milady?...she's gone."_

_Remilia Scarlet chuckled as she left, taking a second to glance at the stair toward the basement. She smiled softly, singing a quiet tune to herself._

"_Humpty-dumpty sat on a wall,_

'_Humpty-dumpty had a great fall._

'_All the devil's bats and all its servants_

'_slowly put humpty together again."_

* * *

**Hello everyone and long time no see! Sorry for my few weeks of absence. I'm just gonna throw in some typical excuses like schools and jobs here, but well, cutting my rambling short I'm just glad to say that the gear in my head has started to spin in full speed again. So sit back and relax.  
**

**Anyway, another light chapter this time. Yeah, maybe there's gonna be some in this arc as this is the 'awakening'; you need to rub your eyes and blink a few times until you can function properly, right? But then, fu fu fu... Okay, spoiler stop here.**

**Last thing, as always, enjoy the story everyone! Review if you may, I'll gladly accept 'em.**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	19. A Shadow From the Past - Approach

**200 years ago, a port town in ****France****—**

It was another merry morning, as expected from the largest port town in the country; people chit-chattering, carts strolling down the street, and even the sun smiled brightly at its restless inhabitants. Nothing unusual. Or so how it looked nowadays, of what used to be the center of the deadliest plague befallen Europe.

People had decided to forget that dark past though, and soon flooded the once abandoned town right after an oriental traveler came back alive from what they used to believe as the devil's nest. They plague had dissipated! They shouted in joy as they shattered down the huge stone wall surrounding it with their hammers and reclaimed the town to its previous glory. After several years of reconstruction their dream finally came true; now the old tragedy of the black death had disappeared into a mere page of history.

Meanwhile, back in the current time, the oriental traveler from before, who decided to stay in the town and made it her home, strolled happily down the crowded market filled with merchants and alike. She hummed happily as she browsed the goods on display, a paper bag on hand ready to be filled with this week's groceries for her 'sisters'.

Yes, 'sisters'; that's how she told everyone. The truth was a bit different though, but we would talk about it later.

Ever since the red-haired girl settled there she had been living with two survivors from the huge disaster, as how she explained about two little girls staying with her, helping them with their daily life. The little girls had never been seen outside though, because they were too weak to leave their house that situated on the edge of the town; she said it was due to the side-effect of the plague.

That was why Meiling, the oriental girl in our story, had to do all the chores related to going out of the mansion, like how she was shopping for groceries right now. Anyways, she was on a great mood because the market had some goods from her homeland China in stock today. Maybe she could cook a Chinese food for her 'sisters' today. She tapped her chin in thought.

"Let's see… How about a simple fried rice? Rice, rice, rice… Ah, there it is! They really have some! And what do I need next? Hmm…"

Meiling thought loudly as she put ingredient after ingredients into her bag, smiling widely as she did. Not long enough she got everything she needed in hand. Well, everything but one. She frowned and approached the merchant.

"Excuse me, do you have any garlic?"

"Sorry miss, they're sold out. A customer just bought 'em all."

The merchants pointed casually to the group of people leaving his stand, and Meiling narrowed her eyes to get a better look at them. That's weird. A shady group of men covered all in hood, buying a large quantity of garlic? …could they be merchants as well? Garlic-dealers? As if feeling her stare, one of the man stopped and twirled, catching the girl in surprise. Unable to mask her embarrassment, Meiling stood there scratching her cheek, an awkward smile on her face. Much to her dismay, instead of turning away and left, the man approached her.

"I'm sorry, do you need anything?"

Meiling gulped, taking a moment to observe the man in front of her. Well, he was quite attractive, with purple eyes and hair, a somehow knowing aura radiated from his gaze. But, wait! She didn't have time to check him out! The Chinese girl mentally slapped herself back to reality, letting out an awkward laugh.

"Um, well, uh, yeah. Ha ha, I need some garlic for my cooking, actually."

"I see. And we just brought you a casualty for buying every last of them."

"…well, not really. I can look for them in the other stand—"

"_Hey, Knowledge! Stop flirting with the ladies or I'll tell your wife! We have work to do, y'know!"_

"I'm not! I'm sorry, my master like to let his mouth running. Oh, and here. You can take some of the garlic. We don't really need that much."

"_Knowledge!"_

"Alright, I'm coming! See you later, and have a nice day."

And then he left, disappearing into the sea of people, leaving Meiling with her own thought and some garlic on her paper bag.

xxxxx

"..ling…meiling…MEILING!"

"Wha—huh?"

"You're spacing out."

Meiling woke up in the kitchen she knew so much, a pan on her hand. Ah yes, she was cooking for dinner. Good thing she hadn't started with the stir-frying or she might've burned their meals, and faced the wrath of her mistress of course. That's the scary part. After returning to her senses she finally noticed the little blonde girl that was sitting on the nearby counter, her legs dangling and swinging back and forth happily.

"You're awake early tonight, young mistress."

"mm-hm, I smelled something good and so I followed it here."

"Really? I don't think you can smell the cooking all the way from the basement."

"Ufufu, you got me. I am just bored. Say, say, Meiling. What are you cooking? What are these white thingy?"

Meiling smiled widely as she saw the little girl's eyes sparkled in curiosity; putting away the pan, she approached the little girl and retrieved the bowl of deliciously white rice.

"These, young mistress, are rice. It is a main dish in my homeland."

"Ooh! Is it tasty? _Tastier than blood?_"

"Uh, yes? But it is not ready yet. We also need the other ingredients I have set aside before."

Meiling walked toward the stove and the little girl followed, floating slightly with her seven-colored wings. Her smile widened as she saw some meat and other vegetables chopped neatly into little blocks.

"First, we put all the other ingredients into the pan and stir-fry them."

"Oh…"

"Then, when they're ready...we add the rice into the pan!"

"Enter the main character! Yay!"

"That's right. Now, witness the power of Chinese cooking!"

As she said that, she lifted the pan away from the stove, shifting it with her one hand; the ingredients in it flew out and floated in the air for a while, before landing cleanly back in it. The little girl watched the whole scene in awe, clapping her hands. But the show hadn't finished yet; soon enough, after a few more shake of the pan, fire burst out of the pan.

"Yay, it's burning high!"

xxxxx

The sound of restless footsteps echoed throughout the mansion corridor, followed by a loud slam of a double oak door. Oh well, Meiling would need to repair them again.

"Onee-sama! Onee-sama, wake up!"

The culprit, a blonde little girl, ran toward the comfy bed in the middle of the room, jumping and diving into it; the bed let out a loud 'oomph'. It was revealed that there was another little girl covered beneath the huge blanket, groaning and crawling her way out, pushing the blonde girl away from atop her. She rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"Yes, Flandre? What is it?"

"There's no time to explain! Follow me, follow me!"

"Wait, Flan, I'm still in my pajamas—"

But Flandre didn't stop; she pulled on her sister's arm and ran out of the room, ignoring her protest. Passing corridor after corridors they finally reached a room with a long table on its middle, decorated with neat table cloth and other tableware. A red-haired girl was there, setting a plate of food down; she seemed to be surprised by the sudden burst of the door as she quickly turned her head toward the two little girl, almost dropping the food in her shock. Another door to fix; the red-haired girl thought loudly in her head as she saw the ruined door.

Silence lingered for only a while as Flandre proceeded to drag her sister once again, in a less chaotic way this time, and motioned her to sit on her favorite chair. The older girl obeyed, eyes fixed on her sister all the while.

"So? What is it this time, Flan?"

"You know? Meiling cooked something special tonight!"

"Me?"

Two pairs of scarlet eyes quickly turned to look at the red-haired girl, one waiting in anticipation and one boring into her in a dangerous glare. Meiling gulped and put down the plate she was holding.

"Err, this is a traditional food from my homeland; fried rice. I hope you like it, milady."

Remilia stared blankly at the unfamiliar dish shoved in front of her, eyes half-lidded as sleepiness still haunting her. She blinked and let her gaze wandered to the other side of the room, finding her sister already sitting happily on her own chair, digging into her dinner. She sighed and took hold of her own fork—no, wait. Spoon. It looked like she had to use spoon to eat this thing. She scoop a little portion of the food, putting it into her mouth slowly.

And she stopped. Frozen.

The Chinese servant of hers, and the responsible cook, seemed to notice the somehow strange behavior of her mistress and approached her cautiously.

"Um…you don't like it, milady?"

**"**_**GaaaahhH!"**_

The little girl suddenly shouted and jumped out of her chair, tackling and grabbing on the collar of the mortified Chinese girl, her eyes red and watery and filled with pure fury.

"You cursed idiot China! Are you trying to poison me? **What did you put in my food!?**"

What?

"No, milady! I would never! I just made a normal fried rice—"

**" WHAT-DID-YOU-PUT-IN-MY-FOOD?"**

The little girl hissed, tightening the grip on her servant's collar.

"..umm…rice, vegetable oil, meat, some pepper and spices...oh, and garlic—"

"Garlic!?"

Meiling shrunk and gulped, nodding slowly.

"You put garlic in my food!? **I'm a VAMPIRE and you put GARLIC in my food!? **...I see, so you already have guts to challenge me now? Very well—"

"No, wait, milady! I didn't mean to! I don't know that you're, uh, allergic to garlic. And lady Flandre seemed alright…"

The two of them switched their eyes to the other little girl in the room that still happily wolfed down her food. Remilia let go her previous prey, approaching the smiling Flandre.

"Flan?"

"Hm? Aren't you eating your dinner, onee-sama?"

"NO. Most importantly, how could you eat 'that'? Is it delicious?"

"Yep! Whenever I eat some the inside of my throat feels burning, it's interesting!"

Remilia quickly snatched the half-eaten fried rice and threw it away; Meiling, with her quick reflexes, managed to catch the food before reaching the floor. She gazed sadly at her master piece and muttered under her breath.

"…you shouldn't be picky in eating..."

Remilia turned and glared dangerously at her; she gulped and bowed in apologize.

"I understand. I'm really sorry, milady."

"Good. Now get me a proper dinner."

The Chinese girl sighed and retrieved the plates, but then suddenly, something resurfaced from her memories and she turned to her mistress once again.

"I just remember something, milady."

"Really? And why do I need to know about that?"

"Err, well, it's just that, this morning when I was shopping for groceries, a group of shady men bought all of the garlic in the market and I thought it was strange—"

"A group of garlic-dealers, huh? Nothing unusual. Oh, and Flandre, would you wait here while I go changing?"

"Okie-dokie."

"Alright. Meiling, come."

Meiling pouted but followed anyway, tailing after her mistress with her shoulders slumped. Were they simply garlic-dealers? Wait, what is a garlic-dealer? Is that even mean anything? But before she got time to ask her mistress, the little girl spoke first.

"Those men. What else do you know about them?"

The Chinese girl stopped dead on her track, staring at the striking red orbs in front of her. They were no normal men, she knew it! And her mistress seemed to notice this as well. She took a deep breath.

"There were about five of them, wearing long coats covering their whole body. I saw the face of one of them though, and his name was—"

xxxxx

"_Knowledge!_ What, are you daydreaming about that cute oriental girl from this morning?"

"What? Please stop it, master, I am married."

That was a half-lie. The man really was thinking about the red-haired girl, _on how his whole body felt like shivering in an unknown fear when he got close to her._

He somehow knew, **that girl wasn't human.**

Many people nowadays might not believed about such thing anymore, but he did. Maybe because he wasn't a human himself. And that's why he was there, following the trail she left, he led his group to that place. The huge mansion on the edge of the town. His master chuckled, watching the mansion from afar with his somehow very keen eyes.

"Good job, Knowledge. That really is the place, I can feel it."

The man lowered his head in a nod, hiding his crunched face behind his hood.

"I have finally found you, Scarlet Devil—no, **the young mistress, Remilia Scarlet.**"

* * *

**Cliffhanger! Ha ha, gotcha! No wait, no flame please! *hides under a table***

**Anyways, lookie here. Meiling being scolded, Flandre knocking down two doors in a day, Remilia being Remilia; nothing new this chapter. *nods nods* But wait, a mystery character made an appearance! Who might he be, and how does he know Remi? Fu fu fu...  
**

**Sit back and enjoy the cliffhanger, everyone! Reviews are mostly welcomed.**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	20. A Shadow From the Past - Revealed

_The dark night I knew too much, the scarlet moon looming up there_

_The majestic red mansion from my long forgotten memories, basked in its maddening glow_

"_**The young mistress—lady Remilia had gone mad!"**_

_Ah, this dream again? How many times has it been now? _

_The restless footstep echoing endlessly, __bone crunching, blood splashing_

"_**Stand your ground! Stop that monster!"**_

_It kept on looping like a never-ending record, but no_

_not this time; a creeping shadow rose from the red stained ground, sneering_

**"**_**I've found you, Remilia Scarlet~"**_

_O' fate that governs over this life, what are you trying to show me this time?_

_Gazing at its mismatched figure, my own smile stretched_

xxxxx

I put back my cup to the plate on my other hand, creating a loud clank; probably a bit too loud, as I could see that Chinese servant of mine flinched, a perplexed look on her face.

"Um, does it…not suit your taste, milady?"

I didn't answer, letting my gaze fell to the herbal tea in my cup, my reflection stared back at me in return. It's been a long time. A very very long time, indeed. I chuckled and whispered softly.

"Fate has finally come to visit me again."

"…fate?"

Ah, yes, I almost forgot about that Chinese girl; she surely had a great hearing. Closing my eyes, I held out the tea cup toward her and tossed it away. Yes, somehow it became a habit of mine when I found her tea intolerable. There would be no casualties though, as she always quick enough to catch the falling cup before it reached the floor; it added up a bit of humor as well, especially when the hot water spilled and she threw the cup away before catching it again repeatedly like a silly juggler.

It is no time for joke though; time was running out. I tossed the little plate on my hand to her, slipping down my comfy bed and letting my wings grew to their full length, stretching my stiff muscles. I smirked.

**Another long time since I had a little fun as well~**

"Return to the front gate at once, Meiling. And keep your eyes for any _visitors_."

"Okay, uh, but…are you expecting someone tonight, milady?"

"Fu fu fu, you will know when the time come. Now go, don't make me repeat my order."

She bowed her head low before scampering out of my room. Now, now, time to make a little preparation for their little visit. Oh, I know. How about making a welcome party? I am sure they would love it.

I hummed to myself as I opened my cupboard, browsing for a proper dress to wear. Well, as the host I had to give my guests a preferable look, no? Yes, I would welcome them with the best and most wonderful party they'd ever attended.

One that would fit their first, and last visit, to the devil's lair.

xxxxx

"_Meiling, Meiling! You don't make anymore of that fried rice today? But never mind, let's play!"_

"_I'm sorry, young mistress, but the mistress told me to guard the gate tonight."_

"_Eh? No fun… I know, I know! Let me help you with your work today!"_

"_Wha—no, young mistress! You can't be seen by anybody with your wings out like that."_

"_Why is that?"_

"_Urgh, well, that's—"_

"_Meiling!"_

"_Buh—What!? Is something there!?"_

"_What is that?"_

"…_umm, I can't see in the dark so if you can help me, young mistress…"_

"_Alright. It's big, and purple, and shiny."_

"…_really?"_

"_Oh, and it's getting bigger! Strange words start appearing as well! Maybe you can see it clearly too now, Mei—"_

"_It's a magic circle—young mistress, get down!"_

xxxxx

"They're coming."

I said calmly as I rested my chin on the palm of my hand in a bored fashion, sitting on my glorious throne. I wondered if I had the same face as that accursed grandpa I hated the most right now; just thinking about it made me want to puke. Nevertheless, I stayed there arrogantly on my throne. They would reach this room soon, so I should be ready to greet them properly.

Speak of the devil; the door adjacent to me burst open, or rather simply burst into nothing, as a figure emerged from behind the rubble. Only one? Then again, I could see the grudge swimming behind his blank stare, and I smiled ever so sweetly.

"Welcome to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Who might you be and what bring you here, I wonder?"

I repeated that same line, the one I always said to those interesting souls getting themselves lost in the devil's nest. He didn't answer; his mouth was already busy muttering something inaudible, reading out the spell from the grimoire on his hand. So impatient, are we?

I tapped my chin, trying to take a better look at the magic circle he called forth; a summoning spell, I see. Interesting. What kind of demon you would call to take down the devil? I waited in my throne eagerly like a little girl waiting for her surprise. My eyes lit up as they materialized, those black hideous creatures with wings as black as mine; they roared and lunged at me, crushing my favorite throne in one simple swing of their claws. I laughed and leaped out of their range, my own claws ready to clash with theirs.

Slice, slice, slice.

My claws ripped through them easily like tearing a piece of paper.

"What are you doing? Putting out the hell fire with fire?"

His face darkened; I could feel the thick mana around him gathered, and I trembled in excitement. Come on, show me everything you've got. As if hearing my taunt, he activated his next spell, blowing out thick red mist from his book, blinding my sight. What a remarkable plan; couldn't fight me head on, you tried to sneak out dirtily from behind.

"What are you going to do next, _magician_?"

I closed my eyes, trying to increase my other perceptions, but still I couldn't find his presence; my, isn't he quite skillful? As if he had been working so hard specifically to render me helpless. Well, I would ask about it later after taking him down.

But my little plan was broken as soon as I came out with it.

The floor below me rumbled and split apart, opening wide resembling a mouth of a furious dragon.

_Metal Sign: Silver Dragon_

xxxxx

"_**Kill… Kill those monsters…"**_

_I see now, no matter how many I kill nothing would change_

_Why? I just wanted to make my poor little sister happy_

"_**That abomination… that heartless murderer... kill them all…"**_

_But how many times I struggled, they kept on chasing after me_

_Was there no such thing as salvation for us?_

xxxxx

"Well, this is troublesome."

He stood there, gazing down at my pathetic figure crashed between the jaw of his silver dragon; the certain metal burnt my flesh painfully, but I kept my smiling face, holding in my scream.

But what was that? What kind of face was that? That empty stare, what did he seek?

"Say, what do you want from killing me? Immortality? Fame? Fortune? Or maybe…"

I studied his stern figure for a while, chuckling slightly despite the pain all over my body.

"_Revenge?" _

I could see him flinched slightly; looked like I had found a loophole. I tried to press on further.

"Could you be a survivor of _that night_? How many centuries have you spent looking for me?"

What was that on his face? Did I just see anger? But no, it disappeared as soon as it came. I frowned slightly; he was a stubborn one. He brought his grimoire back up and chanted another spell.

"Has your grudge drowned you that you have no words left in you? Hey, magician, answer me."

I could see his grimoire fluttered, blue flame engulfing its pages. Ah, this is bad. I tried to search for another loophole among the infinite threads of fate, fixing my eyes on the tormenting figure in front of me. As if to grant my dying wish, or out of his own whim, he answered me in a voice as clear as day.

"I am the 20th 'Knowledge', a magician serving the Scarlet family, and an entity survived until now just to get _my _revenge on you. That night 100 years ago you killed _me_, and since then _I_ have done nothing but searching for you. **So today _I_ will kill you, young mistress, Remilia Scarlet.**"

I could barely feel the sensation of the blue flame engulfing my body, burning me inside out. The next second I couldn't feel the pain anymore, as if all my senses had been ripped out of me. Funny, I couldn't have been dead, right?

…

No. I wouldn't accept it.

My senses returned and I screamed loudly, fighting out the blue flame with my own red magic. I wouldn't die. Not now; not until I fulfilled my promise. I managed to rise to my feet and summoned my trusted spear, lunging at the magician, laughing.

"I see, I understand now! Your great great grandparents died that night, and his descendants kept on living seeking for revenge! Ha ha, what a joke."

I couldn't even remember what I was doing anymore; slashing, clawing, biting. I felt excited beyond my control, and I shouted loudly.

**"Open your eyes, magician! You are used by them; nothing but a puppet born from their grudge!"**

I kicked his grimoire away, stopping my claws just a strand of hair away from his neck. I panted, staring deeply into his purple eyes, searching for an answer. No, not yet. I inhaled slowly and tried to find my voice once again.

"What will you get after killing me, hm? Nothing. Even those grudge you've been holding wasn't your own."

We stayed like that for what felt like eternity, staring at each other deeply as if searching for answers in one another. That simple trance was broken as soon as I heard a crash from behind me; I turned around to find my little sister rushing into the room, her whole front covered in blood just like mine.

"Onee-sama! Onee-sama, are you alright?"

"...Flandre."

Suddenly dizziness invaded me and I swayed, falling into her strong yet soft grip; well, there goes my little shot of adrenaline. I tried to keep my consciousness while making sure that Flandre didn't go obliterating the magician; I still had a lot to settle with him. She seemed to understand my thinking and stayed still, watching me intently. I sighed in relief and returned my gaze to the magician, pushing myself back to my own feet despite Flandre's protest.

"Don't you want to know? The reason for my action, the real meaning of your existence, don't you want to know?"

I could see him wavered, and I smiled once again, extending my hand toward him.

"I can help you."

He froze there for a while, before slowly walking toward me, and my smile widened. It's working; it looked like I could finally end this. But his hand never reached mine, instead, I felt a burning sensation on my chest.

**A silver shard ran through my heart.**

_"You're getting soft, Remilia."_

I could only stared dumbfoundedly at his laughing figure in front of me, the one that slowly burst into blood limbs by limbs.

"Ha ha ha, it won't matter even if I die; my descendant will come for you with even bigger grudge! You can't escape, Remilia Scarlet! **This chain of hatred won't end until your death!**"

The last thing I saw was Flandre's clenching palm and furious scarlet orbs, before everything fell into an abyss of darkness.

xxxxx

I woke up to the familiar ceiling of my room, flinching as the pain on my chest throbbed painfully.

"Onee-sama, you're awake!"

Out of nowhere Flandre suddenly appeared and tackled me as always; I bit my lip, grimacing from the pain she inflicted to my wounded body. She seemed to realize the outcome of her action and quickly detached herself from me and sat beside my bed, muttering a small sorry. I managed to calm myself and let my eyes wandered to my surrounding. Flandre blinked and followed my gaze, before returning to watch me once again.

"Don't worry, onee-sama, I've get rid of that magician and all his gangs! Meiling is repairing the throne room now. Hmm, they seemed to create a strange barrier that the outside doesn't look damaged. Isn't that great?"

I kept my stern look despite her smiling face, and finally, she gave up her childish mask, sighing. Leaping down my comfy bed, she floated for a while before descending to the ground softly, turning to give me her matching scarlet orbs.

"Hey, Remi, would you let me protect you this time?"

Huh? I was taken aback by her statement, blushing slightly. She chuckled in return.

"Don't worry, when the next magician come to get you, '

'**I will grind them to dust."**

She flashed me a soft smile before opening door and heading out, back to her childish world of playful pranks. And I sighed, staring as the door behind her slowly turned into a close.

"I understand your feeling, Flandre, but that way, it won't ever end.'

'**This silly chain of hatred I made will only continue to grow…**"

xxxxx

_Though how many I killed, though how many I destroyed_

_Nothing would change; the shadow kept on rising from the blood-stained ground_

_O' fate that governs over this life, could we ever escape from this endless loop?  
_

_Searching for the answer, I raised my prayer to the scarlet moon_

* * *

**Hello again, everyone! Now, what's this? I couldn't help but feel this chapter is kinda...'intense'. Humm, probably because I haven't write fighting scene for quite a while. Oh well, I hope it turns out nicely.**

**Anyway, enjoy the story everyone! Review is gladly accepted.**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	21. A Shadow From the Past - Resurrected

**185 years ago, a port town in France—**

"It's strange…"

"W-what is? And since when are you here, Flan?"

I tilted my head and gave her the most innocent face I had, sitting on her comfy bed. Hm? We were sisters; why did she look so embarrassed with me seeing her changing? Then again, she might actually try to cover that _thing_.

**That huge scar across her chest.**

I frowned and rested my chin on the palm of my both hands, watching her back and the jet black wings sprouting from it, kicking my legs playfully.

"Hey, onee-sama, I'm worried about that wound you get from that purple guy a few years ago. **Why isn't it healing properly?**"

She seemed to tense a bit hearing my question, and I blinked. Aha, so she really did try to hide it from me. And I wasn't even a bit happy with her decision; I really hoped she stopped that, treating like a helpless and innocent child. I narrowed my eyes, waiting for her answer.

"…that is nothing to be concerned about, Flan. You worry too much lately."

Oh no, you don't. I won't let you get away this time, onee-sama.

"It's been years, onee-sama; it's normal for me to worry. Vampires like us should've recovered in mere minutes."

She sighed, putting on her night gown in one swift movement and closing the cupboard she was browsing. She's ignoring me again. I clamped my mouth shut, glaring at her; she turned toward me and gave me a light chuckle in return.

"Well, you are never 'normal' to begin with, so you shouldn't worry about such trivial things. Besides, it is but a mere scar now—"

"_**It is not a trivial thing!"**_

It happened again, just like it had always been; I always lost control of myself whenever I got angry.

The next moment I realized I had already in front of her, claws buried into the stony material of the wall on both of her side, barely digging into her neck. I stared into her matching scarlet orbs as I pinned her on place for a while, watching my hideous expression reflected on her eyes; I growled and took a few steps back, clutching my head.

No, this is bad.

"Flan—"

"**Stay away!"**

My voice sounded so twisted and hoarse, unlike my usual childish one, and it horrified me. I didn't think I could hold myself in check for long, so I darted my eyes away. One hand still clutching my throbbing head, I walked out of her bedroom with my face facing the ground. I couldn't bear staring into her eyes in this state; I was afraid seeing my own twisted face.

I was afraid of seeing fear in her eyes;

**her fear of me.**

"…I'm sorry, onee-sama. I'll be returning to the basement now. Good night."

I didn't look back to wait for her response; I closed the door behind me tightly and put my back against it, trying to calm myself. My headache didn't subside, if not getting worse.

"_Hey, why are you resisting? Just let it out."_

No. No, no,_ no—_

"Young mistress, what happened!? Are you alright? Is the mistress alright?"

The voice brought me back to reality and I blinked, bringing my face up to meet a worried figure of a girl.

Who is she?

…

Wait, I know her. She is Meiling, our servant. I sighed, a little relieved that I could still hang on my tiny reason for now; I tried to flash her an assuring smile.

"I'm okay, Meiling. I'm just…returning to the basement now. Oh, and please watch over my sister, okay? Night."

I walked away, trying to look as usual as possible, and once I was out of her sight, I ran and rushed down to the basement, locking the huge steel door to my room with every lock I found and every sealing spell I knew.

Once I was done with it, I stepped back slowly, staggering and letting myself fell to the cold floor. I stared blankly at the dark ceiling up above me, trying to catch my breath.

"_Aww, you're cutting off the best part again~"_

I froze as I recognized the voice; the same sweet alluring voice I'd forgotten for quite a while. But then, after a while, it suddenly felt so familiar. So I laughed instead, letting all the tension leave my body.

"Ha ha, I thought you're already dead, _Flynn_."

"Why would I be dead?"

Strange. I never remembered hearing her voice this clear before. As if to add up my curiosity I heard footsteps coming from the far end of my room, along with jingling sounds that I seemed to know so much; I turned my face toward the source of the voice, and soon enough, as I recognized the little girl revealing herself in front of me, I once again froze.

"U fu fu~ Long time no see, _Flan_."

xxxxx

"_Milady, may I ask you a question?"_

"_As I always said, it depends."_

"_Uh, yeah, umm… Are you having a fight with the young mistress?"_

"…_no. No, we're not having a fight or anything."_

"_Really? When I bumped into the young mistress just a while ago, she seemed a bit angry."_

"…_I see. She did, huh?"_

"_Yes, but most of all, I know that she's been worrying about you."_

"…"

"_I know this isn't my place to say anything, milady, but please don't take all the burden by yourself. Though I don't know anything about your past and I know I can't do much, but still, I want—no, WE want to help you. The young mistress must be thinking the same thing."_

"_Fine, I will think about it. Now stop lecturing me and pour my tea already."_

"_Great! Err no, I mean, understood, milady!"_

xxxxx

She was there, with my face and my eyes and my smile.

She was standing right there.

Why?

How could that be?

"How could that be? You must be thinking about that now. "

"No... It can't be—you're just a voice in my head…"

"Am I?"

She brought up her palm toward me, smiling sweetly. Wait, that gesture; I knew what she was going to do, with that 'eye' forming itself on her palm before she clenched it.

"**Kyuu~"**

I froze as I felt the left part of my face being torn, and soon enough, as I finally recognized the pain, I screamed. I could only clutch on my bleeding flesh as I saw her laughing loudly in front of me; the wound had started to recover, but not my shock.

"Ha ha ha, how nostalgic~ That half-burnt face of yours remind me of the old days, Flan."

"You are there? You're really there?"

"Hm? Yeah, but if you ask how, I don't know myself. I know that I am the embodiment of your madness though. So the more you call for it, like forgetting your reason and losing your temper, the easier for me to appear."

Madness? Yes, madness. It had always been there, but I almost forgot about it. Or maybe, I tried to ignore it?

"But let's talk about you. You seem to be bothered by something. What is it?"

_When did she—_

I quickly turned and leaped away from her, readying my claws; she gave me a childish giggle in return, putting her hands behind her back.

"I'm part of you, so there's no need to hide it. I can help you."

"…I don't think I can believe in you."

She tilted her head childishly like I always did, giving me a questioning look; I didn't fall for that though, and I growled dangerously. She giggled again.

"Maybe you can stop acting like a savage for a while. From what I remember, you don't like being one."

I watched carefully as she pulled a chair over and motioned me to sit down.

"Come on. Let's have a little chat."

I approached her slowly, and as I finally sat down, she pulled another chair for herself, sitting adjacent to me so we could see each other face to face. What was she planning now? If it involved hurting Remi, then I rather killing her with my own hands instead. Even if it means killing myself. She seemed to realize the dangerous glare I'd been giving, but her smile didn't wavered even a bit.

"You're worried. Or maybe, it's better to say that you're frustrated, huh?"

"What are you talking about?"

"There is a group of magician wanting to kill your sister, and you don't know why. Oh, maybe you already know why, and you get even more frustrated because of it. Why? Because the reason she was targeted, **it's because of you.**"

I gripped on my skirt and casted my gaze away in shame. That's right, I knew the reason. I knew she killed all the other vampires and their familiars to save me, and now, that magician wanted to get revenge on her because of it.

Because of me.

"But even more than that, you're frustrated because you can't do anything about it. Even after saying something cool like 'when the next magician come to get you, I will grind them to dust'; you don't even know when they will come and how."

"…then what?"

"What 'what'?"

I stomped my foot to the floor and stood, giving her another glare.

"What are you getting at, Flynn?"

"U fu fu, what a scary look you have there, Flan. Calm down, I came here not to laugh at you. I want to help you as well, see?"

"You're lying, like you always did."

"Aww, you're so mean. That's not true; letting you go on rampage give me excitement, too. And since you already have someone you want to destroy this time, we can call it a truce and work together."

"So, how then? You already know that I can't track them down and onee-sama will probably find them first. You're not getting anywhere."

What a waste of time. I plopped back to my chair, sighing as I let my head lolled over the headrest, gazing at the dark ceiling once again. I heard her giggle not long enough though, and I returned to look at her, frowning.

"We don't need to track them down. There's an easier way. It's as easy as 'clench and boom', y'know."

"What way?"

She leaned forward a bit and I did the same, eager to hear what she had to say, and finally, she whispered.

"Why of course,** we'll let them come to us~**"

xxxxx

"_They're coming."_

"_They? Wait, milady, don't tell me…"_

"_Yes. So get ready and return to the gate immediately."_

"_Um, what about the young mistress? You should tell her about this."_

"…_fine. I will tell Flan about my plan, so stop giving me that look and get going."_

"_Alright, you can focus on that 'Knowledge' and leave the other magicians to me! Oh, and one more thing, milady."_

"_What is it?"_

"_Don't push yourself too hard and good luck!"_

xxxxx

Step, step, step.

That light and airy footsteps, it had to be onee-sama. I glanced at Flynn who was playing with the leftover skeletons of my dinner, and as if feeling my stare, she glanced back at me. Scarlet against scarlet, our eyes gleamed with mischief.

And a wicked smile stretched on our face.

"_Time to play~"_

* * *

**_Dun, dun, dun~! A death flag has been raised! So watch out, Knowledge number 21, and prepare to face a fully enraged Flandre. But what plan does Flandre have? And what about Remilia and that scar? Fu fu fu... The climax of this arc is getting near..._**

**_For now I can only say, enjoy the story everyone! Review if you may, and...  
_**

**_See you in the next chapter~_**


	22. A Shadow From the Past - Clash

_Hey, tell me_

_What is a shadow?_

xxxxx

The walk down the basement somehow felt very long for now, with her own footsteps echoing in the dark hallway, Remilia Scarlet started to grow impatient. It had never bothered her before; she had descended the stairs for countless times in her long life, but with the clock quickly ticking off, she couldn't help skipping a few steps down. At the same time though, she hoped the stairs would go on forever, so she halted once in a while, hoping that time did the same.

She had set up a perfect stage to welcome the _magician_, that 'Knowledge' who wanted to claim her head, and the only thing left was to set all the pieces on board. But what troubled her wasn't the probability of its success; it is the fact that she needed to include her sister in her somehow ludicrous plan. She rather finished it herself but…

"Flandre will get angrier if I don't tell her this time."

She mumbled to herself, sighing. Ah well, there's no time to turn back now; she inhaled deeply as a huge steel door appeared in her vision. Putting her hand on the cold metal, the young vampire pushed the seemingly heavy door open with one simple push, revealing a little vampire girl on the floor happily drawing with her crayons. The vampire quickly noticed her presence and switched her gaze away from the messy drawing she made, showing a big smile.

"Oh, onee-sama. What brings you here?"

Remilia took another deep breath, calming herself.

"Well, I have something important to tell you, so listen carefully, okay?"

"Okay."

The little girl nodded and sat, fixing her eyes on her sister as the other vampire approached her slowly. Remilia smiled and proceeded to sit beside her, trying to keep the warm and light atmosphere as she spoke.

"Flan, do you remember about the magician that come to our mansion a few years ago?"

"Oh, **that purple guy who tried kill you and gave you that scar on your chest?**"

"…yes. Him."

Well, there goes the peaceful atmosphere. Remilia sighed to herself; she could already felt the anger bubbling in her sister, threatening to come out. But she couldn't back down now. Maybe she could still persuade her to follow her plan, hopefully.

"Do you remember? Before he died he said something about revenge."

"So?"

"He also mentioned about his descendant—"

"Stop beating around the bush, onee-sama."

"..."

Remilia clamped her mouth shut, staring at the younger vampire as she stood and walked toward the door.

"**The next magician is coming**; that's what you want to tell me, right?"

Flandre spoke quietly, face facing the the steel door of her room with one hand planted on it; she didn't look back even a bit, but her voice was calm, much to Remilia's surprise. It was unlike her previous predicament, but still, something was amiss. Remilia narrowed her eyes, studying the figure in front of her carefully.

"**How do you know?"**

"Hm?"

Nobody but her, the one who could see the incoming fate, would now about the magician's arrival. Did the gatekeeper tell her? No, that would be impossible. She just told her a few minutes ago and the Chinese girl had gone straight to the front gate right after that. What's going on? As if in cue the huge steel door suddenly light up, glowing in red as a familiar pattern appeared on the metallic surface; Remilia froze as she recognized the magic circle, a high-level sealing spell her father taught her a long time ago, and the other vampire giggled, finally turning to face her sister with a twisted smile on her face.

"_U fu fu, surprise~"_

xxxxx

_A shadow is something without substance_

_formed from the incarnation of yourself_

_Oh, I see_

_So then, why is it black?_

xxxxx

"Hmm… Nothing suspicious until now. Then again I forgot to ask the mistress when the magician will come."

Meiling groaned, scratching her long red hair in frustration. The night was so peaceful and soothing that it almost lulled her to sleep, but no, she mustn't! She couldn't let her guard fall in such important moment! She sighed, closing her eyes.

"But thinking that those magicians might attack at anytime make me quite nervous. Aah, what to do—_whoa!?_"

The Chinese girl opened her eyes to a white flower shoved on her face. Wait, what? She jumped a safe distance away in impulse, taking out her battle stance, carefully studying the figure of a girl that apparently holding out the flower to her; it was a little girl in hood with a basket full of flower. Could she be the daughter of the florist whose shop she passed by quite often?

...

Yeah, that's must be her.

Meiling sighed and returned to her full height, discarding her fighting stance. The girl blinked and held out the flower once again, while the gatekeeper did the same, giving her a perplexed look.

"Um, is this for me?"

The girl nodded, hiding her face behind her hood timidly. Meiling smiled and took it gently, trying not to scare the little girl any further. She chuckled.

"Thanks, it really cheers me up. Hm, it smells…so…nice…eh?"

"…"

Suddenly the redhead swayed, as if losing her balance, and she fell face first to the ground, unconscious. But the little girl didn't seem to care a slightest bit; she casually walked past the fallen gatekeeper, and without a word, she entered the door leading to the majestic red mansion behind the tall stone wall.

The girl walked in a steady pace, as if she had known the place despite the fact that it was her first time coming there, passing corridor after corridors swiftly. Soon enough the double oak door leading to the throne room was in her sight; she girl muttered quietly under her breath, and suddenly the wind raged around her, blowing the door open to reveal the wide hall that seemed to have been burn in the back of her mind.

But the seat was empty.

**The Scarlet Devil was nowhere to be seen.**

The girl blinked once, and twice, but the scene didn't change. She cautiously walked into the dark room, listening closely to any sound beside her own footsteps. It was quiet, too quiet; she might as well had walked into a trap, but it wasn't like she didn't count that possibility. So she closed her eyes, muttering some more inaudible words; the wind around her once again raged as a huge circle formed itself on the floor, glowing in purple. Opening her eyes, she held out her index finger, pointing to the far dark ceiling.

_Earth Water Sign: Noachian Deluge_

As she finished her mumbling water bullets were formed out of the thin air, flying at the direction she was pointing in a blinding speed, chasing after an unknown figure hidden in the darkness; the creature moved in a matching speed to dodge bullets after bullets that was lunging at it, a faint jingling sound followed its every movements. The magnificent barrage of magic didn't last forever though, and it finally subsided, revealing the creature it was chasing under the moonlight. The vampiric creature giggled, watching the magician below her as she somehow floated with her grotesque wings adorned with colorful crystals.

"Hello and welcome to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Onee-sama is not available right now, so I will greet you in her place. Do you need something—ah wait, wait, I know. You're that 'Knowledge', right? You must be looking for my sister! But as I said before she's unavailable right now, too bad."

The girl didn't answered; she pulled out a thick book from behind her robe, muttering once again. As her whispering words flowed, she raised her book over her head and a ball of light started to gather on its surface; the vampire stared at the display of magic with wide eyes, excitement painted all over her face.

_Sun Sign: Royal Flare_

"Oh, oh! You want to play? You want to play with me? Okaay~ Squeeze and—"

The young vampire held out her palm toward the incoming artificial sun, giggling.

"_Boom."_

xxxxx

_Is the shadow black because_

_the inside of me is also black?_

xxxxx

"What are you doing, Flandre?"

"Me? Haven't I told you before?"

Flandre twirled and stepped away from the sealed door of her room, giving Remilia her cute innocent smile.

"I will protect you from the magician."

Remilia blinked as she registered the statement. Ah yes, Flandre did say it before, back after she obliterated the previous magician. She just didn't expect the younger Scarlet had been taking her words this far; part of her felt happy to think that her little sister cared so much about her, but the other part of her knocked herself back to reality remembering the outcome of that foolish action. No, she had to find her way out.

"Why, thank you. But you seem to be well informed about the magician arrival, Flan."

"U fu fu, of course~"

The blonde vampire approached her sister, circling her with hands folded behind her back.

"First, I knew that you are coming down here, and from your unsteady footsteps, I knew that you were nervous about something; you always do that when you're nervous, skipping a few steps and all. And when you're nervous, you must have something very very important to tell. Second~~"

She held out her arms, embracing her sister from behind and lightly caressing the fabric of her shirt, right above the scar on her chest. Smiling widely, she whispered softly into her ear.

"**Your wound must be aching now, right, onee-sama?"**

Remilia tensed as she felt her gentle touch, blushing slightly from the unfamiliar action, and the blonde vampire in return smiled wider.

"It doesn't heal properly means that it isn't a normal wound; that magician must have put a spell on it. But then, nothing happened for years, until it suddenly started acting out even though you did nothing out of ordinary. So I guess the spell must have reacted to the magician coming for you."

"Well, aren't you quite observant. But before that, may I ask?"

The younger vampire blinked, staring into her sister eyes as the other vampire glanced menacingly at her.

"**Who are you? And where is Flandre?"**

'Flandre' froze at the statement before laughing, detaching herself from the vampire as she skipped away happily, walking toward the sealed door once again.

"Ooh, amazing~ You're a great observer yourself, Remi. Okay, let me introduce myself then."

'Flandre' twirled to face Remilia once again, sloppily curtsying.

"I am the madness resided within Flandre Scarlet. Well, technically I am her, but she like to call me 'Flynn' instead."

"I see. So Flynn, may I ask you a favor?"

"Oh? What favor?"

"Open that door and let me out."

Flynn shook her head, a huge smile still plastered on her face.

"Too bad, no can do~ Flan told me to keep you here while she play with the magician—"

"Then make that an order."

Remilia stepped forward, pointing accusingly at the resemblance of her sister as she spoke with great confidence.

"**Open that door and let me out.****"**

The blob of madness silently stared at the older Scarlet in front of her, seemingly stunned. But suddenly she trembled, before throwing her head back, cackling loudly.

"Ha ha ha, you're very interesting, Remi! I think I understand why Flan like you so much. But nope, I still can't let you out~"

"Very well, then I will open it by force."

"Aww, don't be like that. Flan will be mad at me if you're hurt."

Remilia chuckled, holding out her hand to summon her trusted spear.

"Ah, then it's easy. Don't move as I take you down along with that door, understand?"

"Eeeh? You're such a meanie. Wait, I have a better idea!"

Flynn clapped her hands happily before holding out her own hand, summoning a strange black cane and brandishing it like a sword. Her smile stretched from ear to ear.

"**Rather than me trying not to hurt you, how about you trying not to get hurt?"**

What a twisted logic, just like her sister's; the vampire smiled, readying her spear.

"That is fine by me. Come."

_Divine Spear—_

"Alright, let's go~"

_Taboo—_

_..._

_..._

xxxxx

_Why is the shadow black?_

_You don't know?_

_Okay, tell me then_

_How do you kill a shadow?_

* * *

**_Hello, ello, everyone~ Lookie here~ The showdown had started!  
_**

**_...I feel like being too mean to Meiling, letting her fall easily like an idiot. But pfftt, Patchy disguising as a flower girl-*royal flared*  
_**

**_Ah well, anyway. Enjoy the story everyone!_**

**_See you in the next chapter~_**


	23. A Shadow From the Past - Fate

_It was always the same, all this time_

_We will kill them, kill them all_

_Everyone that stand in our way_

_Will disappear into the shadow_

xxxxx

The night at the port town was a quiet one, safe for a few bars and inns that were still opened until the end of the night, until the sun decided to peek once again. It was a peaceful sight, especially for a mansion situated on the edge of the town. Little that they knew, since nobody would visit that striking red mansion in the dead of the night anyway, what happened behind the dense illusionary barrier was a scenery of chaos unable to be perceived by mortal eyes.

"Aha ha ha! This is great!"

Slam, crash, slice, burn; the mismatching sounds of destruction echoed within its wide structure, played by the hands of a young little vampire, creating a crazed cappricio that suited her playful nature. The vampire herself danced to the melody she created, laughing as she childishly swung her burning black cane like an over-sized sword, turning everything she passed by into mere ashes.

"Come on magician, I haven't finished playing yet! Show me something more more interesting~!"

The _magician_ dodged the attacks rather sloppily, and one could see she wasn't at her best condition, panting and wheezing as if she's running out of breath; the vampire seemed to notice this as well, but instead of dealing the final blow, she stopped.

She just stopped, retracting the flame from her cane and floating a safe distance away, above the magician. And the magician gazed back, her grimoire fluttered as she once again, with every little bit she had, tried to read out the spell written on it.

"Hm, I'd like to play some more but I should really wake up Meiling to serve our late dinner. Onee-sama must be starved by now..."

The magician didn't seem to listen at all, her incanation growing louder as the magic circle below her raged. But so was the blonde vampire, blurting out everything she wanted without even noticing the magician. It was as if they were in a very different dimension despite the fact they tried to kill each other.

"Okay, one last game!"

_Fire Metal Sign: Saint Elmo's Pillar_

A ball of fire materialized and chased after the vampire in a blink of eye, but it never hit her; it passed after her dispersing figure and hit the wall in a big explosion instead. The magician tensed, raising her guard as the vampire vanished into the dark for the second time in their meeting, her giggling voice could be heard echoing from all around the room.

"_Our last game is a simple hide and seek~ U fu fu, I wonder if you can find your way past this 'secret barrage'~"_

The magician tried to calm down, trying the previous trick she pulled by closing her eyes and heightening her other senses to find the vampire.

"_Or, maybe in the end—"_

_But her breath lost her, and she could only hear her own heartbeat pounding against her ribcage._

"_**Will there be none?"**_

The vampire reappeared, right behind her, claws ready on her neck; with one simple tug, her head would be detached, but the next second the magician opened her eyes, it was still intact. Instead she found the vampire chained to the far off wall, held down by unusually red chains. She blinked, unable to process the situation. What just happened?

"_Well, well, I wonder why everyone is having fun in MY mansion without me?"_

At that moment everything was put into a halt, and the two who had been on each other's neck snapped their head toward the source of the voice, staring with wide eyes as they returned to reality from their self-induced onslaught.

"Good evening. Why are you all look so surprised, hm?"

The magician paled, temporarily entranced by the memerizing figure of the newly arrived vampire, captivated by her mere presence. She whispered under her breath, frozen.

"_**Remilia Scarlet."**_

"Onee-sama!? How do you—"

"That is my line, Flandre. Your clone made quite a mess. Or rather, what were you thinking locking me up like that?"

"Uurgh..."

Flandre pouted, averting her gaze away from her sister like a child getting caught for pranks. Remilia sighed, finally turning away from her sister and fixing her eyes at the magician who was still stunned, sitting on the floor; smiling slightly, the older Scarlet curtsied, addressing the magician.

"Please forgive my sister's previous behavior, Ms. Knowledge. She was just excited. And I believe you are looking for me, correct?"

The magician flinched, returning to reality as she hastily, yet carefully, returned to her feet, clutching her grimoire tightly above her chest. She studied the vampire in front of her, eyes observing her whole features, detecting any suspicious act. Well, whatever the vampire might be planning, it was clear that the magician wasn't in a condition to fight back. She should calm herself for once and took the time to restore her mana, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. So the magician stood, giving a quick bow to answer the vampire, which seemed to be more satisfied than she thought she would be. The vampire chuckled.

_Time to execute my little plan. O' fate, play your game and heed my command..._

"I see. But would you like to call it a day? **I don't feel like fighting you in your current condition; it wouldn't be challenging.** Furthermore, I also had something to offer regarding our 'duel'."

"Wha—onee-sama! What are you—"

"Hush, Flan. I'm talking with our guest."

"Guest!? Guest, you said—"

"Please calm down for a while, Flandre. _Please._"

Somehow, Flandre stopped almost complete as she heard that; she stopped struggling and averted her gaze away, her eyes regaining her sanity despite the anger that was still thickly clouding them. Well, that's good enough for now. Remilia focused her attention to the magician once again, trying to look as harmless as possible.

"Now, about my offer. First, if you win, well, I think I don't need to mention the obvious on what you want to do. Second, if I win, **I want you to stay at my mansion and serve as the magician of the Scarlet family once again."**

_The dice have been thrown. Now, what number will it show?_

Silence lingered for what felt like eon, engulfing the three figures in a heavy atmosphere of uncertainty. Nobody moved; the magician, the two vampires, not even the wind. There was only suffocating silence, and a painless waiting. But the first voice that painted the air was not one that any of them had anticipated before, as the magician opened her mouth to say something.

"_Nonsense."_

The voice echoed, coming from the chained vampire. Her bloodthirst eyes pierced the air, past the older Scarlet and landed on the purple-clad magician. The chains around her started to creak.

"Duel? Agreement? And most of all, letting that magician alive? **I can't follow your nonsense anymore, Onee-sama!"**

Remilia flinched as she heard the thunderous roar, horror was flashed on her eyes slightly, only slightly, before it was soon replaced with caution. She quickly summoned all the magic inside her to support the breaking chains, but it was too late.

The chains shattered into a mere speckles of red light.

Flandre laughed, spreading out her grotesque wings as they finally tasted freedom once again. Her destructive power raged, crackling in the air as it made an invisible wave of chaos, sending everything around her into ruin; the floor, the wall, the magician, even the older sister she wanted to protect. They were all being crushed by her power. But her mind didn't register it, even as her beloved sister was sent flying to the the wall, crushed by the invisible force that she emitted. Her sole consciousness was focused on the whimpering magician in front of her.

"This is not a game, onee-sama; **that 'Knowledge' is trying to kill you!** Kill you! Ha ha, don't you know what it means?"

The insane vampire jerked her body forward, her head lolling to her side as she watched the magician with crazed eyes.

"If you don't kill her now, she will wait until you let your guard down then snip snap off your head~ But don't worry onee-sama, I will protect you. **I will kill her now, for you.**"

Remilia coughed, trying to clear her blurry vision to find Flandre descending slowly, approaching the magician with one hand extended, as if trying to reach out. She quickly registered what the younger sister was trying to do, and in a moment of impulse, her body moved.

"_No, Flandre! Stop!"_

"Squeeze and boom~"

A magnificent red fireworks exploded, followed by a sickening crunch of bones and skull. Flandre let out an insane laugh as she heard the sweet familiar tune, the red raindrops fell into her smiling face, tainting her body in red. But soon enough her laughter died out, as her gaze fell to the silent magician in front of her; one that was still fully intact and alive, unscathed even a bit.

...

Wait. Something was strange. Why was the magician still there in one piece? Didn't she just _'kyu'_ed her into pieces? Why? If it isn't her, then, who did she...

Flandre paled and, slowly, fearfully, switched her gaze toward the disheveled body just a few feet away from her. There was something familiar about the lifeless figure on the ground; that lavender hair, jet black wings, and seemingly dull red eyes. Strange. That _thing _look some much like—

"Onee...sama...?"

The blonde vampire took a step back, shivering, hugging herself as if to prevent herself from falling apart. No. It couldn't be possible, right? She just held the 'eye' of that magician and crushed it, right there and then. So it would be impossible for her to crush her beloved sister instead.

...

That's it! It must be the magician showing her some kind of illusion!

But why? Why was she scared? Why did something hurt so much somewhere? As if to clear up her thought, she heard a familiar giggle in her head; the forever so sweet voice of her insane core.

"_Congratulations, Flan~ You just kill the last bit of your family with your own hands~"_

xxxxx

"_I will find us a place where you won't be a monster, where everyone will accept you as you are."_

_"Promise?"_

_"Promise."_

_..._

_It's impossible now. I tried to stop you, but it was too late._

_I can't feel anything anymore._

_But why can I still hear your voice?_

_A voice so painful that it screams so much in agony?_

_..._

_Then this is wrong. __I can't give up now._

_I have to return to your side and hold you _

_before you start breaking apart_

xxxxx

"—_**wake up! Remilia Scarlet!"**_

The blood red orbs suddenly jolted awake, regaining the light it once lost. Their owner sat up swiftly, but quickly regretted it as pain shot all over her body, spurting out blood from her mouth. She cursed and wiped away her blood, trying to register her surrounding, but quickly met with a purple-clad figure holding her slowly recovering body.

"Magician—"

"It's Patchouli."

The vampire blinked, staring at the magician as she processed the new information.

"**My name is Patchouli Knowledge."**

Remilia froze for a while, before regaining her composure and chuckled, but quickly stopped as her body felt like tearing apart once again.

"Stop moving. I have bind your soul back with my philosopher's stone, but nothing else. Now, tell me how to stop _that thing. _My barrier can't hold on for another five minutes."

That thing? The vampire carefully turned her head toward the source of destruction; just as she thought, it was none other but her little sister, Flandre Scarlet. Her wings grew, just like trees, entwining her like unbreakable thorns; it was the same as that day, the day when their father died. The shock of seeing her one and only sister fell before her must be too much for her, but then Remilia knew.

The only one who can stop her little sister now, was her. She managed to smile and shakily rose to her feet.

"_That thing _is my sister. And back me up, Patchy. I need to get closer to her."

The magician frowned a bit at her new nickname, but brushed the matter off in an instant.

"Impossible. You can't even move properly now. And even if I open a way for you, your current body will break apart before you reach her—"

"Worried much?"

"..."

"Don't underestimate the Scarlet Devil, Patchy."

"_Aha~ But I can't let you do that~"_

A voice was heard just a breath away in front of them, and Patchouli leaped away, taking the wounded vampire with her. Well, this is just great; a new problem when you need one. The infamous Flynn materialized before them, watching them with a quite sane smile while madness was clearly painted in her eyes.

"Oh, are you working together now?"

"...a clone?"

"Whatever, I won't let you get closer to Flan. We're having a quality time now~"

Remilia glared at the blob of madness. This is troublesome. How would she got past her while Patchouli need to take care of Flandre's thorny wings at the same time? But right then, fate decided to give its blessing.

"—mistress! Are you alright? I'm sorry, the magician—aaah, the magician! What is she doing with you here!? And the young mistress! Why are there two of them—"

Good timing. A vine suddenly grabbed on the gatekeeper's ankle, pulling her until she hovered up-side down, facing her employer in an eye-level.

"Thank you, Patchy. And Meiling, take care of that clone. Now."

"..uh, okay? Waaaaah!"

Suddenly she was thrown away, an insane little vampire was waiting for her fall eagerly, baring her fangs.

"It's Meiling~ Fine, I'll play with you for a while~"

"No wait! On second thought, this is impossible, milady!"

But the vampire didn't listen; she was taking a deep breath, planting her feet on the floor as she readied herself to make a jump for her sister. Yes, it was a sink or go; she wouldn't mess up this time. She glanced at the magician, who had started her incantation.

_Don't disappoint me now, o' fate_

3...

2...

1...

...

xxxxx

It was morning, and the bird was already chirping happily, giving a song of a new beginning to the whole inhabitant of the port town. But a certain red mansion on the edge of the town stayed silent, as it always did. Not long enough a red-haired girl appeared from behind the front door, walking out toward the bustling town. She might have needed to do grocery shopping and the like, but what about inside? She couldn't be the only person living there, right?

On the main bedroom, laying on the comfy bed was a little girl with lavender hair; her chest rose and fell slowly as she slept peacefully, seemingly too tired to move. Beside her sitting on a chair was another girl, with purple eyes and hair, reading her thick old book as she waited patiently for the seemingly younger girl to wake up.

And finally, she did.

She opened her eyes groggily, flinching from every little movement she did, and the other girl sighed.

"...it's still hard to believe you finally open your eyes. Vampire's regenerative ability is truly frightening."

"Well, if it isn't the magician—"

"Patchouli."

The vampire chuckled.

"Ah yes, pardon me, Patchy. Are you happen to know what happen to my sister? Oh, and about our 'duel'. I believe I promise you today—"

"Your sister is fine; she's supposedly resting in her room now. And no, thanks. _I don't feel like fighting you in your current condition; it wouldn't be challenging._"

"...fine, I will accept your challenge anytime—"

"I won't be needing that, too."

"..."

The vampire gave the magician a perplexed look, only to find her hiding her face further behind her book, mumbling under her breath.

"**I will be staying in this mansion from now on, your library need some clean up."**

"...huh?"

Did her mind playing trick on her? Didn't that girl want to kill her? No, NEED to kill her? Ah right, maybe she wasn't fully awake yet.

"The 21st 'Knowledge' has the duty to carry on the grudge passed down from its ancestor; to kill the young mistress, Remilia Scarlet. But me, even though the memories of all the previous 'Knowledge' have been implanted on me, I have never met her. And the air-headed reckless sister-complex vampire in front of me is nothing like the cold-hearted murderer I used to believe all this time. So I decided...'

'**I will stay by her side, and decide everything with my very own eyes."**

Remilia stared dumbfoundedly at the magician who had finally set her book aside; purple against scarlet, their gaze met for what seemed like eternity. And then the vampire laughed. She laughed loudly, whole heartedly, before coughing and whimpering on her bed, but even then chuckling still.

"He he, I see. So you will be staying here, huh?"

"Yes...milady."

"Drop with the formality, Patchy; just call me Remi. I can hear you say the honorific like you get something stuck in your throat. But really, 'air-headed reckless sister-complex vampire' is really too much."

"Truth and Knowledge are walking on a same path."

"Why you.."

_Knock, knock_

"_I brought tea and some medicine."_

Remilia turned her face toward the door, watching as the magician rose and walked toward it. The door was opened to reveal her Chinese servant, who looked at her as if she was seeing a ghost. The redhead threw away the tray she was holding and rushed to her mistress' side, but she was knocked away right in an instant by a smaller figure of a blonde vampire, who hugged her sister tightly, yet carefully, muttering 'thank goodness' over and over. Remilia stroked her hair lovingly, while her eyes wandered to the other two in her room; her Chinese servant who was being scolded for dropping the tea, and her somehow new magician companion. And unconsciously, she smiled.

xxxxx

_It was always the same, all this time_

_We will kill them, kill them all_

_Everyone that stand in our way_

_Will disappear into the shadow_

_But as we embrace our shadow of wickedness_

_It suddenly feels so natural_

_As if we're always been like this; a long lost friends_

_Ah yes, this is what they called 'fate'_

_A salvation that is waiting for us in the end..._

* * *

_***Sniff sniff* so beautiful...**_

_**Why hello, everyone! *salute* Finally we reach the end of the current arc! But hey, what's this? Somehow I feel so warm and fluffy instead. This is no doubt the sweetest ending I've ever given to any of my arc. Yep, yep. *nod nod***_

_**Aaanyway, next will be a short intermezzo and wa-la! A brand new arc. We are getting closer to the end of our story, everyone! So get ready to meet more and more familiar cast after this.**_

_**So then, enjoy the story everyone! Review if you may, and...**_

_**See you in the next chapter~**_


	24. --Siesta--

…_._

…_._

_Zzzzzz_

_...—jolt!_

"_Whuh?"_

_Rub, rub._

_Yawn._

"_Mmm, I fell asleep... "_

_Blink, blink._

_Yawn._

_Glance, glance._

"_Eh?"_

_Pat, pat._

_Silence._

"_Where? Where is it?"_

_Panicking._

_Glance, glance._

"_Ah, there it is! Phew, safe..."_

_Sneak, sneak._

_Take._

"_That magician won't be happy if I drool all over this book... He he..."_

_Sit._

_Open._

**THIRD ARC: AWAKENING**

**END**

"_Yup, I'm all awake now. Let's end this before mr. Moon come out to play!"_

**FOURTH ARC: ADVANCE**

**BEGIN**


	25. To Serve a Vampire's Whim

_My name is Patchouli Knowledge,_

_the one-week magician, probably known by now as the unmoving great library._

_Everything I ever did are for the sake of revealing the greater truth, thus my thirst of knowledge gave birth to this library._

_But this little grimoire in your hand; this "Scarlet Archive" I made, was nothing but a simple whim._

_A tiny memento I have for a friend of mine, _

_about her past, her family, and the blood red trail she left behind._

_This is not a story about me._

_This is the story about the Scarlets, when they have finally decided to leave their tattered world behind._

xxxxx

**100 years ago, a city in France**

Dark. Cool and damp. Just the way I like it.

I took a simple sip from my cup of tea, eyes locked on the newest grimoire I had finally discovered. It was difficult to find books about magic nowadays, with the industrial revolution occuring, magic had finally being pushed aside by science.

It was the dawn of a new era for humanity.

And us, magicians and the like, had started to be forgotten.

Things didn't go quite satisfying for the supernatural beings, or generalized as 'youkai' by the eastern, in the current era. Why? I wouldn't explain their natures and traits in details, though how much I'd like to, but it happened since most of them existed from the fear of humans. Thus, when humans started to deny them, they would also disappear.

Extinction; as how you might say it.

It wasn't really hard for us magicians to fit in given our humanoid shape and similar anatomy, but for those closer to bestiary, well, it went without having me to say anything. But as countermeasure I had started a research, about a far far away place for us youkai.

An eastern wonderland.

A place where youkai coexist with humans. And my reasearch had reach to a point where I could pinpoint the location—

"What are you looking so serious about, Patchy?"

"_Mukyu!?"_

There goes my peaceful brainstorming. I jerked away from the table, dodging the sudden pair of scarlet orbs that materialized in front of my face, almost toppling down my chair; their owner simply laughed softly, letting her jet black wings fluttered as she plopped gracefully on my desk.

"Did you find an interesting grimoire?"

I swallowed a bit, trying to find my voice amidst my shock; luckily my asthma didn't act out.

"...yes."

"I see. It's been a while since you found one I presume."

I gazed as she took hold of the book I was reading, skimming through it with her sharp red eyes. I sighed. There were two possiblities on why she suddenly appearing here.

First, the most common one, because she was bored thus she would ask me to do something 'interesting'.

Second, the silliest, because she had a fight with her sister.

There were times when there was a third possibility though; that was, because she REALLY need my witchcraft to do something important.

Wait, haven't I introduced her yet?

Her name was Remilia Scarlet, a vampire, the mistress of this mansion I lived in, and my close friend. How we ended up as friends was a different story. For now, I felt more like her babysitter, so I sat straight back up on my chair, eyeing her playful figure.

"So? What brings you here today, Remi? Another quarrel with Flan?"

"Fortunately, no. Flan has been stable lately."

"Really? I recall she came to me a few days ago because 'onee-sama stole my pudding'."

"I didn't—wait. I don't know the two of you had grown fond of each other."

That was quite questionable, true. About a good few decades ago I nearly killed this very vampire in front of my eyes, and her little sister hated me with her very being. So maybe hearing her little sister looking for my company sounded alien to her. In fact, I hardly believed it myself.

"Time changes people; you can put it that way."

"Hm, maybe Flandre had finally understand your position. Besides, it was thanks to you that this itching wound on my chest finally subsided."

"You should call it 'aching', not 'itching', Remi. It almost infected your heart."

She simply laughed. She was too carefree for her own good sometimes, which I believed why she had never thinking of relocating anytime soon. Her existence was already near the point of vanishing! Truly she wasn't that foolish, right?

"Putting that matter aside, you haven't told me why you come here."

"Ah, yes. I need your help, Patchy."

She leaped down my desk, and I narrowed my eyes, following her swift movement. Her piercing red eyes stared back at me with an unknown intention. She smirked.

"**Something that can only be done with your magic."**

xxxxx

I stared dumbfoundedly at her, at her figure proudly sitting on the stack of books she had proclaimed as her favorite chair, eyes twitching in irritation. She couldn't have come here and asked for my magic to get—

"**A brooch?"**

"Yes, a brooch."

"You want me to use my magic...to make a brooch?"

"Yes and no. I want you to get a very brooch lost in the past, **the kerykeion; symbol of the head of the Scarlet family."**

I pinched my temple, taking a deep breath.

"So you want me to remake an exact same brooch?"

"No, Patchy didn't I tell you?"

She floated down the stack of book, giving the one on her hand to me.

"It was a one and only brooch made from a unique gem, passed down from ancient era. And I want you to get that brooch for me; that exact brooch."

"Which means you want me to..."

"Fu fu fu, you fill that blank yourself. Well, I better leave you to your exciting research then. I have to solve the lost pudding incident with Flandre."

My eyes still locked at her as she retreated to the door, staring in disbelief.

"_Have fun, magician~"_

xxxxx

"No. Wrong. This isn't it."

I put away yet another failed experiment, sighing to myself. How many days had passed since she gave this silly task, I wonder? And yes, why do you look so surprised with this pile of junk? Magic is not as simple as chanting spell or swishing your wand. It needs a pure understanding of the formula and materials needed. And what she asked for was nearly impossible.

"Time and space manipulation magic."

I reread the block letters written in Latin; my voice was hoarse as sign for not sleeping for days. Really, that vampire always did everything on her whim. Why would she need that brooch anyway? I was too late for me to stop, though. So I try to reform my thought, straightening my posture and took another another sip of my tea.

"Alright, let's see. Everything are composed from seven main elements, with a formula to form them. To 'get something from the past' means to relocate that object from the 'past' to the 'present', and relocating means you have to rewrite the formula of 'space' in that object. But to pass the time barrier, you need to get the 'exact formula' of that object at the exact time in the past."

I wrote down everything I had for now, joining one point with another to make one complete formula. In truth my theory was almost complete, leaving only one tiny gaping hole.

"**I have no data about the brooch."**

What was it made of? I can deduce the size, but what shape? What color? There was no book in this library that explain about that simple yet crucial information. I had asked Remi before, but she could only gave me the outline. I guess I couldn't expect much from the family that had vanished into ashes.

But my curiosity and thirst of knowledge had won over my reason. Yes, there was only one little thing left to figure out. And if all the books in this world couldn't answer my question, where else can I find one?

"The Akashic records; the memories of the world."

Yes. Everything had the history of themselves written in the Akashic records; living being, inanimate objects, everything. By patching the scattered information hidden in the records I could obtain that brooch once again. But where? Where could I find the object that hold all the memories I need? Where can I find the complete history of that brooch?

Suddenly, a realization hit me like a wave, and I froze. Gazing at my own reflection reflected in the surface of the red tea on my cup.

It was right before me from the start.

xxxxx

"Knock, knock, Patchy~ Are you there?"

"_**Here it is!"**_

I rose from my desk almost instantly, sending some piles of thick books crushing to the floor with a loud slam. I could see Remi raised a brow at my sudden outburst, and I chuckled, a tired yet satisfied smile on my face.

"This is it, Remi! This!"

She approached me slowly, rather carefully. I wondered what's wrong? But my exhilatared mind couldn't care less.

"You don't look...well, Patchy. I think you need some sleep."

"No wait, before that, look! Here."

I revealed the brooch to her, putting it on the desk between us.

The kerykeion shaped brooch, with a shining red gem on its top.

The symbol of the Scarlet family.

"This brooch..."

I watched as she took it on her hand, inspecting it, before she finally blinked and snapped her finger.

"Ah yes, I remember. I asked you to retrieve this scarlet brooch a few weeks ago, eh Patchy?"

"Huh?"

Suddenly I felt like the little energy I had left was drained out of me, along with my excitement.

Really. She forgot about it.

I had been working hard to satisfy her whim and she forgot about it.

Amazing. Vampires are truly amazing.

"No, Patchy, I was only joking. I couldn't have forgot about this."

I gave her a look of irritation, resting my chin on a stack of books. She was laughing like it was nothing, but I wasn't as carefree as her.

That's it. I swear, this will be the last time I listen to her silly request.

"Say, do you really retrieve it from the past?"

"..using the memories of all the previous Knowledge implanted in me, it is possible. But I don't think you need to know the detail about that."

"Aww, stop sulking, Patchy. Your tiny performance means a lot."

Right, tiny performance. I'd like to see you pull off something like that, Remi. I was about to retreat to my room for a good long rest when I heard her sweet voice calling for me once again.

"Actually I have something far more greater that could only be done with your magic. Would you like to hear?"

I'd like to ignore her and walked away, but no. My feet stopped walking; for the countless time, my curiosity and thirst of knowledge won over my reason, and I turned around, gazing at her scarlet eyes that held back a boundless wonder.

"I need you to relocate something far bigger than this tiny brooch."

It was too late for me to stop; eighty-five years too late. My fate had been locked, serving her curiosity for eternity for the sake of my own thirst of knowledge.

"I want you to relocate this mansion and everything inside it to a land in a far away east, **to an eastern wonderland called **_**Gensokyo**_**."**

* * *

**Hello ello we meet again, everyone! Whoops, sorry for the sudden hiatus with no announcement. *put in the typical school and job excuses***

**Anyway, the new arc is finally here. And this time, our magician finally make her first debut as the main cast. You know, it really wrecked my brain thinking and making out that half-baked theory, thanks a lot Remi.**

**Hmm, so SDM is on its way to Gensokyo. Well, I wonder what kind of 'welcoming party' do our old la-*PICHUUN* gap youkai has for them. Fu fu fu...**

**Enjoy the story, everyone! Review if you may and...**

**See you in the next chapter~**


	26. Our Last Moment in Reality

_For some reason, the first thing that comes to mind when I close my eyes_

_are the young shadows of a promise made, blurred in the dim light of that day_

"_Even now, is there still something left by your side?" – I ask _

_If the wind will carry my question, surely the answer will reach me_

xxxxx

"_We are moving away. Tonight."_

Hong Meiling groaned as she replayed those words in her head, resting her back on the red brick wall she knew so much, her gaze wandered to the clear blue sky.

"Gensokyo, an eastern wonderland."

She had heard rumors about that place, that artificial paradise built for youkai on the isolated island far more to the east from her homeland. A place that accepts everything as they are and treat everyone as equal; it sounded too good to be true, she thought. Then again, it's still better than being forgotten and disappeared into nothingness, such that was the nature of youkai like her.

To stay and accept death, or to leave everything behind and keep on living?

The answer was clear enough.

The world had never accepted her in the first place anyway; those humans had driven her out of her homeland out of fear, and now they decided to just cast her away out of ignorance. Surely, there was nothing far more better than leaving for good.

But still, she hesitated.

Leaving this world, isn't it the same as dying? Doesn't it mean she have given up? Then what was she struggling for all this time?

The Chinese girl sighed, closing her eyes. What now? Should she run away like she did before? As she mulled over her decision a simple thought crossed her mind, and she reopened her eyes in an instant.

"I see... That's it! What am I hesitating for; I don't have a choice in the first place."

She stood straight back up, pushing herself off the wall, a determined look on her face. Her previous worry nowhere to be seen.

"**When the mistress give me an order, I only need to follow!"**

She was a youkai, driven away and cornered by the world. But more than that she was the gate keeper of Scarlet Devil Mansion. If she left this tattered world behind it would because her mistress said so; nothing more, nothing less. Yep, she would deal with her personal feeling later.

Because that's what she had decided the moment she accepted her role.

Hong Meiling brought her fist up to the sky, a huge smile plastered on her face.

"**Alright then, let's make this last day here a great one!"**

xxxxx

_That place where it all began, _

_a place with no name I called my own_

_No matter where it is, I promise,_

_forever and ever, to keep on searching for tomorrow_

xxxxx

"_I expect you to have relocated everything by tonight."_

Patchouli Knowledge sighed, her eyes switched from a grimoire and moved onto the next, letting the thick books levitated around her with her magic.

"To cast a high level magic on such huge scale with a moment's notice, moreover Space Manipulation magic which has never been my forte..."

The magician grumbled, but her body working still; she threw another grimoire to the growing piles of book in preparation for the incoming big ritual. She realized it's been too late to set up the magic circle around the massive mansion and preparing the ritual from scratch, so she would rely on the composite magic sealed within her various grimoires and construct them to meet the criteria she needed.

That itself, was not an easy matter.

"Being absurd also has limit, Remi..."

"Oh, did I just hear someone grumbling under her breath?"

And lookie here; that whimsical vampire just loved to make matter worse for her. She either stil held a grudge over the past ordeal or she just love toying with her; the magician thought loudly in her head as she pinched her temple, trying to ignore the floating figure in front of her.

"...I thought vampires should be sleeping around this time."

"I usually am, but not today. One must be excited in such a big day, don't you agree, Patchy?"

"I am not sure I am as excited..."

The little vampire chuckled, plucking one of the floating grimoire, which earned a glare from the magician. She didn't seem to care a least though and proceeded to playfully skim the old book. Finally the magician gave up.

"Why do you insist on moving tonight? And why do you tell me in such short notice?"

"Well, you seemed busy the past few weeks—"

"Thanks to your brooch."

"Well, but anyway Patchy, you must have realized the situation regarding our existences, true? So I guess it's better to move away as soon as possible. Besides, isn't it exciting to do something while being chased by the ticking clock?"

The magician took a deep breath, trying to hold herself from bursting a vein in anger. When did she say about never listening to the vampire's whim again?

"Magic requires preparation, Remi, so I will appreciate a faster notice."

"Really? But I know you can do it, Patchy. **I believe in you.**"

"...please, buttering me up wouldn't change a thing. Now if you please, I need to finish the preparation for the ritual."

"Gladly. Be seeing you in the wonderland, Patch."

Patchouli Knowledge watched as the vampire left, leaving her alone with her thought once again. Sighing, the magician returned to her grimoires, softly muttering under her breath. But little known to her, a small smile crept up her face.

"**I can't escape from this fate anymore, can I?"**

xxxxx

"_Even now, what is this still left by my side?" – I ask myself_

_Though I've already thrown away everything I thought might break._

_The days you gave me were too much for me to carry_

_So I took with me just a name, leaving the rest to you_

xxxxx

"_I've finally found it, a wonderful place for you."_

Flandre Scarlet hummed as she played on the floor with her crayons, happily drawing on the pieces of paper scattered around her, the crystals on her wings jingled softly as she did. The day had finally come! The one she and her beloved sister had dreamed of for century. She giggled to herself as excitement filled her very being; the little vampire rolled and held her masterpiece up to the artificial sky above her, smiling at the vividly bright color between the jet black scenery of her room.

"A wonderland; I wonder what color is the sky up there. Oh, oh, will there be rainbow? A night filled with stardust? He he, I can't wait!"

The little vampire let her arms fell to her side, silently staring at the dark ceiling above her, a childish smile on her young face. She had never felt this happy before, and for once, all the 'eyes' scattered around her didn't bother her in a bit. Somehow she could forget about them right that moment. Maybe she could completely forget about them once she reached the wonderland?

"Don't be silly."

"...not you again, Flynn."

The smile on her face vanished, but not all of the excitement in her; the blonde vampire switched into a sitting position, pouting at the mirroring replica of her. Her replica did the same, minus the pouting. A few seconds of staring contest and the blonde vampire decided to ignore that blob of madness, switching her attention back to her drawings. One, two, three; three seconds. Just about three seconds of peaceful moment, suddenly her replica clapped her hands; her smile stretched, but still in the border of sanity.

"Remi said she will find us a place where we won't be monsters, right? Where everyone will accept us as we are."

The vampire growled and turned, her red eyes pierced the blob of madness in a threatening manner.

"What are you plotting now, Flynn?

"U fu fu, don't give me that face, Flan. I want to enjoy the wonderland as much as you do. So how about this;** let me explore the place to my heart content for a day, then I promise to listen to what you say from then on.** What do you say?"

Flandre Scarlet narrowed her eyes, staring at the extended hand of her replica. What should she do now? Should she take this offer? The little vampire swallowed, mulling over her decision over and over. Finally, slowly, carefully she shook that hand, but only for a moment, just a moment, before she retracted her hand and returned to her crayons with a quick huff.

"**Deal. But let's be good girls and wait until then, 'mmkay?"**

"Okaaay~"

xxxxx

_Let us go without stopping_

_Let us go never turning back_

_Before we're unable to take another step _

_While our hearts are still crimson_

xxxxx

"_It's finally time~"_

Remilia Scarlet silently sat on her throne as she waited, a broken pocket watch on her hand. Her red eyes were locked on it, as if waiting for the gears to suddenly spring back to life; it had been a secret habit of her, while she was lost in thought reminiscing about her past. But that miracle had yet to happen, so as reality came crashing back down, she let the little mechanism sunk back into her pocket. She sighed as she let her gaze wandered around the throne room, looking at nothing in particular.

"Gensokyo; the land of dream. Fu fu, I wonder how true that name is. But then again, does it mean my kind have reduced into a mere fantasy?"

She raised her hand, staring at the almost translucent flesh that was her own. She really was on the border of vanishing, literally. The vampire sighed and closed her eyes. Her ears could catch the sound of machinery far outside the mansion. Yes, that's true. Humans had already forgotten about her existence, and they had finally decided to bring down that old mansion on the edge of the town tomorrow.

For once she felt like a coward; a shame to her noble kind, to turn her tail and run like that. But alas she had no other choice. She had a promise to fulfill, and this time, just this time, maybe she could cast away her pride for the sake of it. **For the sake of her sister and their future; **she couldn't throw away her life yet, not after everything she had done until now.

"To do the opposite is what is what I call running away. Giving up after everything went tough."

"Now look who's grumbling."

The vampire reopened her eyes to find her magician friend on the door, silently letting herself in. She chuckled.

"Ah, if it isn't the great Patchouli Knowledge. I thought you want me to leave you alone with your grimoires?"

"While I was preparing for the ritual, yes."

"And what you want to say is?"

"Stop acting dumb, Remi. You know what I want to say."

The magician paused to wait for the vampire's response, and when she got nothing, she continued her speech.

"The preparation is finished. We are ready to move at any given time."

"Good work, Patchy. I know a great magician like you can do it~"

"Just stop with the sugar-coated words, please."

Remilia laughed softly.

"Say, would tell the gate keeper to fetch Flandre and come to the throne room right away?"

"I am not your servant, Remi. Do it yourself."

"Ah, but she will come here, right? Since she help you in setting up the grimoires all around the mansion, I believe she will come right here after she's finished with her job."

"Then why would you ask in the first place?"

The magician gave one of her rare glare; she usually wouldn't give such face, but the lack of sleep thinking about mind-wrecking theory had driven her to her edge. Fortunately, their 'quarrel' was stopped short by a Chinese girl appearing on the door.

"Um, excuse me? Did I...bother your conversation?"

The magician closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself down, pinching her temple. Remilia laughed at her friend's behavior, before she turned her attention to her servant.

"Not in a slightest. Do you have something to report?"

"Yes, milady. The grimoires have been set. I have come to the basement to check on the young mistress, but she didn't seem to response to my knocking. I have shouted and left a note on her door just in case though. Maybe she is still sleeping?"

"I see. Well then, I guess I will talk to her later. Now, Patchy—"

"I'm on it. Just wait a moment."

The magician held up her grimoire and started her incantation. Soon enough magic circles were formed all over the red mansion, engulfing the building in a soft purple light. The marking grew intense as her incantation grew louder, and the wall started to groan as the magic pushed on the firm structure. Soon enough it covered the whole surface, and the crackling of thick mana in the air started to sound like a storm had brew in the room.

Little by little, the scenery faded. Along with everything in it.

The gate keeper gulped as she witnessed the whole scene; her body that dissolved into the air slowly, worried about what might happen. But the vampire kept her calm. Sitting on her throne, she eyed the ritual with a curiosity hidden behind her scarlet eyes. She raised her hand once again, and the once translucent flesh had truly vanished this time.

Remilia Scarlet chuckled as she closed her eyes, ready to face whatever she might find when she reopened them this time.

"**I hope you are ready to welcome my arrival, the eastern wonderland, **_**Gensokyo.**_**"**

xxxxx

_That place where it all began, is always there to be remembered _

_On the long road alone; together_

_One step at a time we move forward_

_Wherever we head, whatever we see _

_I swear to myself, from now on to never ever falter_

_Forever..._

xxxxx

...

...

...

**:.100 years ago, ****Scarlet Devil Mansion entered Gensokyo**

* * *

**The new chapter is finally here~~! *jumping out from a pile of paper works***

**Hello ello, everyone! Long time no see! Or was it... Anyways, here's a new chapter for you to enjoy. And it looks like Remi and the gang are ready to meet the soon-to-be-but-already-familiar-to-us Gensokyo. I wonder how their arrival will be *cough*Vamp *cough* incident *cough***

**Say, anyone find the italics paragraph familiar? Yep, they are fragments of lyrics from "Gentle Fog" by circle "Get in The Ring". It's a wonderful song that is worth to check out. Actually, I made this chapter while listening to it. Oh, and there's a bit revision on the previous chapter. It wouldn't make any change to the plot though, but just in case. (yeah, silly me overlook a few little things... I just realized it thanks to a comment from a reader... OTL)**

**Well then, enjoy the chapter everyone! And thanks for all the reviews, it really lifts up my spirit. *zealous mode***

**See you in the next chapter~ **


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